The Rise and Fall of Dark Fire and The Elements of Disharmony
by Shady pillow
Summary: For Twilight Sparkle, making friends was tough. So when a new unicorn comes into Ponyville, she naturally tries to show him kindness and friendship. However, when Twilight's new friend constantly distracts her from preventing a warning from the future and an assignment from the princesses, things can be said that weren't meant. Can Twilight and her friends stop this new threat?
1. intro

WARNING: If you're allergic or prone to rage at: Oc's, black ponies, overused memes, pairing, funny jokes, the color red, fourth wall breaking, minor violence, filler, and cake. Read at your own discretion… enjoy the fanfic.

Intro

'What went wrong back there with him? Why did I have to snap at him? Will we be able to bring him back? Will I ever be able to apologise to him?' These were the thoughts that were going on in Twilight Sparkle's mind as her and a dark figure, about a few inches shorter than Luna, were galloping next each other on a road in Ponyville.

She would have thought of more questions if it wasn't for the energy blast that exploded five feet in front of her. It was shot from one of the dark pegasus guards that were chasing them. In response to this act, the dark figure leaped into the air as if it was flying and spun around so that its back was facing away from the guards. It used a blinding blast of light that caused them to crash into several buildings. Twilight's objective to reach her library could now be achieved without much trouble from the guards, but she still had to hurry and get her friends out of town before the faint red pulse engulfed it.

Twilight rushed through the door of her home, only to see that all of her friends were right where she had left them. She attempted to form words, but was forced to take oxygen into her lungs from the long gallop she had just recently done. Everypony looked at her surprised as she stood in the doorway inhaling air faster than a vacuum cleaner. It wasn't until Applejack spoke up causing the silence to break.

"What's the matter sugercube, did it not go well?" Applejack asked.

"Yeah, it looks as if you ran a marathon." Rainbow Dash commented.

Twilight, still out of breath, attempted to make movements with her forelegs to indicate the approaching danger, but was not successful in this hoof-gestured movement.

"Ooo, is this a game where we all act crazy and random?" Pinkie pie asked, bouncing up and down. "I play this game ALL the time!" She yelled happily.

Twilight was now even more frustrated and started to point out of the window frantically on the second floor. Luckily for her, Fluttershy was the only one that noticed this and trotted up the stairs, heading towards it.

"Look darling, just take a deep breath and tell us what happened." Rarity said in her fancy tone.

"There's *pant* no time *pant* we need to *pant* get out NOW!" Twilight yelled, startling her friends.

"Um girls, there's a b-b-big scary red light heading towards us." Fluttershy said in a frightened tone.

Rainbow Dash heard this and flew to the window only to confirm the worst as she saw the incoming light.

"She's right, and there's also a red ball of..." Rainbow stopped and gasped. "Fluttershy, GET DOWN!" She yelled.

The explosion sent both of them to the first floor unharmed but dazed. Spike was also sent down to the first floor, unfortunately he crashed into a table. The dark figure then ran into the room and slammed the door. In the light, it was now apparent that the dark figure was not only a female pony, but an alicorn. She then signaled to Twilight that it was time to go.

"Ok, everypony stay close to me." Twilight said as she used her magic to teleport her and her friends out of her home and into the Everfree forest.

After they emerged from the light, they started galloping through the forest. Twilight used her horn as a light source to guide them through the dark wilderness. They ran until they could not breathe anymore and until… they were lost.

However, the dark alicorn had other plans besides standing around. She lead the others into an unfamiliar cave not seen by any of the mane six before. The cave was unlike any other witnessed by pony eyes. It was lit up by enchanted torches and lights that went down a hallway similar to that of a royal palace. It came to an end that revealed two black doors about fifty feet tall and thirty feet wide. It was then that Rainbow Dash asked Twilight the question that was on everypony's mind.

"Are you sure we can trust her? I mean she's all mysterious and stuff!"

The alicorn turned around and rolled her eyes at the small comment of suspicion.

"Well, she kind of saved my life back in Canterlot." Twilight said, glancing at Rainbow Dash.

"Wait… she did what now!?" Rainbow Dash asked in a shocked tone.

"I will explain later, just trust me on this." Twilight said in a calm voice.

The alicorn then stood in front of the door, staring at it for a good five seconds before shouting. It was a language unknown to any of them except to the lavender mare. The door glowing with a purple light, as a response to the alicorn's command, opened. As the door opened slowly, Twilight explained to the others that the language the alicorn used was ancient dragon tongue, which was long forgotten by ponies centuries ago. It was a language that she always wanted to learn for herself.

The alicorn then signaled everypony to follow her into the doorway. Once they followed her inside, they noticed a pale gray field surrounding another dark alicorn who was sleeping inside. The female alicorn slowly trotted towards the barrier and then placed both of her hooves onto it. Her horn then started to glow and her hooves were suddenly filled with power as she started to break the barrier.

"Ok girls, now you can ask me questions." Twilight said in a relieved manner.

"Well for starters, what the hay is goin' on?" Applejack demanded.

"Yeah, like those explosions that go BOOM and the jerky Pegasi!" Pinkie said in a curious and hyperactive tone.

"And that big scary red light." Fluttershy said timidly.

"And more importantly," Rarity spoke up. "Those two over there." She said pointing her right hoof at the two alicorns.

"And what about Night Shadow?" Rainbow Dash added.

"Okay, okay, one at a time." Twilight said as if she was about to be overrun with hundreds of questions. "I guess I should start from the very beginning."

Twilight then began to recap what had happened and how this entire mess started in the first place. "Okay... it all started like this." Twilight said, regretting the things she was about to explain.

(Sorry everypony about the bad sentence wording, I edited the best I could... if you have any advice or constructive criticism, let me know. Thank you)


	2. Chapter 1

**_WARNING: If you're allergic or prone to rage at: Oc's, black ponies, overused memes, pairing, funny jokes, the color red, fourth wall breaking, minor violence, filler, and cake. Read at your own discretion… enjoy the fanfic._**

Chapter 1: A New Friend

One week before the incident…

It was a beautiful winter night in Equestria, but then again, when wasn't it? Everypony was doing their own thing; from sleeping, to going out to late night parties with friends. Twilight however was snug in her living room, with a nice book in front of the fire sipping some hot chocolate. Around 9:00 PM, she started getting ready for bed until Spike walked in the room.

"I thought you were going to bed?" Twilight asked.

"Well Twilight, it's kind of hard for me to fall asleep so early." Spike replied.

"I told you to go to bed Spike. You need your sleep." Twilight said, glaring at him.

"Aww, can I have five more minutes? Please Twilight?" Spike begged.

"You asked for five more minutes ten minutes ago." Twilight said, looking at the clock.

"I promise, just five more minutes and I'll go to bed." Spike pleaded.

"Fine, five more minutes, but that's it." Twilight said as she sighed in defeat after watching Spike go into his room.

"Goodnight, my little assistant." Twilight whispered to herself as she closed her book about the history of Equestria, which was mainly based on the past events before Nightmare Moon. Suddenly, she felt a chill fill her home. As she looked around the room in surprise, a small tornado formed in the center of it.

'This can't be right. All of the windows are closed and the door is shut. What is causing this?' Twilight thought as lightning soon started striking the floor near the tornado.

If it had continued any longer, it would have caused some serious damage to her home. Suddenly, a bright light burst out from the center of the lightning twister, revealing a pony covered in smoke. Twilight recalled this event to be the same thing that happened long ago when her future self came back in time to tell her not to freak out. However, the pony that appeared in her living room was not her future self. As she examined the pony on the ground more closely, she discovered that he was a male unicorn about the same size as Big Mac.

His coat was dark red, with a long black mane and tail. It was obvious this pony did not know what a mane cut was. He also had a cutie mark of a green chemical bottle which meant alchemy, with a strange insignia on it almost resembling a backwards six. When he opened his eyes to look at her, Twilight then noticed that his eye color was a deep violet. Realizing that she was staring at his eyes for too long, she quickly looked down at the floor embarrassed. The unknown stallion then began to speak in a calm, soft voice.

"Hello, I didn't mean to scare you with my fancy entrance Twilight, but that is not important at the moment." He told her.

"Wait, how do you know my name?" Twilight asked, reestablishing eye contact with him out of suspicion and curiosity.

"Twilight, if I remember correctly, this is the exact same thing you experienced with your future self, so please listen closely. Everything around you will be put in danger if you don't do exactly what I say, do you understand?" He asked her in a serious tone.

Streaks of lightning started to come off of the red unicorn as he waited for her response.

"Yes, I understand but that still doesn't explain- " She was cut off by a black hoof being shoved into her mouth.

"Darn it Twilight, why do you have to be so cute when you're confused?" He asked her.

"What was that?" Twilight asked, almost shouting after she swatted his hoof away.

"That's not important, just listen to me, I don't have much time." The mysterious pony said exasperated.

"No, see you clearly said-."

"I don't care what I just said, just listen! You will be given a special assignment from Luna either today or tomorrow and it will be big. Also, tomorrow I will come into town by the road you took the first time you came into Ponyville. Don't tell him, I mean me, what I have done today or it will mess up the time frame." He said.

Lightning started to form around the unicorn at a rapid pace signaling the inevitable.

"Darn!" The unicorn shouted. "I should of had more time than this, something is affecting the spell! Twilight whatever you do, when I walk through that door eight days from now at exactly 8:00 pm, do not-" He was suddenly cut off when in a blinding flash of light the unicorn vanished, the only thing left was black marks on the floor and a lot of unanswered questions.

"He could have at least cleaned up the room!" Twilight shouted in frustration, looking around her messy space. "But what did he mean by all of that and that assignment?" She wondered, thinking about the information the mysterious stallion provided her with. "UGH, this is so confusing!"

Twilight decided that it was time for sleep, and hopefully she thought, it would make more sense tomorrow. However, what she didn't know was that Spike was eavesdropping the whole time on the conversation. He jumped in bed to act as if he was asleep as soon as she approached the room.

The next day came as Twilight awoke to the sun's bright rays, shining in her face. It was Monday and it was always hard to get up on Mondays for anypony, even for her. However, this did not stop her at all from what she had to do today... nothing, or at least that's what she thought. She then went to the kitchen to have breakfast with Spike who was still half asleep. Soon, while enjoying a nice fresh bowl of honey and oats, the subject of what happened yesterday popped up.

"Sooooooo..." Spike elongated, "When were you supposed to meet that red pony again?"

Twilight, who had been drinking some of her orange juice, suddenly spat it out on to the table and looked terrified. She forgot that one thing she was supposed to do.

"Oh my Celestia, he never told me exactly what time he would come into Ponyville! Quick, what time is it?" Twilight asked, panicking. "Wait how do you know about this?" She asked, glaring at him.

"Well, you see, about that..." Spike started trailing off from the rest of his sentence, looking left and right desperately trying to find an answer to her question.

"Never mind, you can tell me later, we need to go now!" Twilight said forgetting that she had a table cloth around her neck as soon as she ran out of the kitchen.

"Oh brother." Spike said, frustrated as he ran to catch up.

* * *

On the outskirts of Ponyville

"So this is uuhhh… what is this place?" The red unicorn pondered, as his downright ancient map levitated up into his face. "Why isn't this on my map? And what the hay is Ponyville?" He shouted to himself.

He soon decided to keep on trotting down the road because, well, there was nowhere else to go, and he was hungry as a horse.

"Okay, I will make refuge here for today and maybe I could get some answers." He said, beginning to carelessly walk with his map in his face again.

He soon reached the small bridge that went over the stream along Ponyville until he tripped on a loose cobblestone. The map he was levitating began to fall to the floor in front of him only to be stopped short by a certain lavender mare.

"Oh man, I am so glad I found you, I have been looking everywhere. Oh, where are my manners? I'm Twilight Sparkle, what is your name?" Twilight asked.

"I'm sorry, have we meet before?" The red unicorn asked as he looked up at her. "My name is Night Shadow by the way."

"No… I don't believe we have." Twilight said, extending her foreleg to help him up off the ground.

"You know, I am perfectly capable to get up on my own..." Night Shadow grabbed hold of Twilight's hoof, getting pulled up. "But thank you."

Twilight now noticed that he was wearing some strange devices, two in fact, that fit on each leg like bracelets. There were eight in total. They were silver and each had a glowing purple gem in the center. She was curious about them but didn't want to ask… yet.

"Nice cape, where did you get it? I might want to get one myself, a black one though..." Cutting her off mid-thought.

"What are you ta…" Twilight stopped and looked behind her, noticing what he meant and began to blush lightly. "Oh that... I was in a rush." She said blushing, then she took it off casually, hoping that no one saw her.

"No kidding. Well I will be off unless you want to assist me in finding a place to stay for tonight." Night Shadow said.

"That sounds wonderful, I can introduce you to my friends while we're at it." Twilight said cheerfully as they walked along the bridge. That's when Spike finally caught up with them.

"There you are, Twilight!" Spike said as he walked up to Night Shadow and pointed at him. "Hey isn't that the guy from the, mmmmffpp!"

He was silenced by Twilight who closed his mouth like a zipper using a spell. This made Twilight nervous as she looked at Night Shadow, thinking that the time span would collapse if anything were to be said. Instead he looked confused and impressed at what had just happened.

"I have never seen a spell like that! You must be quite good at magic to pull that off without even looking at him. Who's teaching you, or are you self taught?" Night shadow asked, now looking interested.

"Well I do self teaching sometimes, but princess Celestia is the one who teaches me the most." She said this with confidence expecting a surprised response from Night Shadow, but instead got the opposite.

"Oh her... I should have known better." The interest of the subject seemed to drain from his face as she spoke.

"What's wrong with Celestia?" Twilight said in a now defensive manner.

"Well, she and I have had some…disagreements. But it's nothing you should worry about." He said in a dismissive tone.

Twilight was about to say something until Spike unzipped himself and started to speak.

"Twilight, you know that I hate it when you do that!" Spike said rubbing his mouth as the zipper disappeared.

"Well if we're done standing around, can I have my map back?" Night Shadow said almost abruptly as if trying to change the subject.

"I am... sorry, here you go." Twilight levitated the map to Night Shadow who then caught it with his own magic.

Twilight also noticed that his magic aura was dark purple which were somewhat similar to his eyes. He put the map in a golden container for protection, and then stuffed it into his black bag.

"Okay Twilight, lead the way." Night shadow said pointing a hoof forward.

Twilight took the lead as him and Spike followed her to the center of town. She explained that the town hall was where Mayor lived, and other information she thought he should know. Everything was normal until they ran into a certain pink pony that gasped when she saw Night Shadow, jumped twenty feet into the air, and took off.

"Who was that? And how did she…" Night Shadow looked at Twilight, confused and frightened.

"That's Pinkie Pie, one of my friends, and don't try to understand her. I tried and it ended badly. That's when I learned to accept the way my friends are no matter how weird. Although you can expect her to throw you a 'Welcome to Ponyville' party." Twilight said, laughing at the expression on his face.

"Just like that? No one has ever been that nice to me before, but I don't plan on staying that long unless I change my mind." He said.

"Well, let me introduce you to another one of my friends, she lives at Sweet Apple Acres." Twilight declared with a wide smile.

"Why do I feel like I have done this before?" Spike asked sarcastically.

Soon, after twenty minutes of walking, they arrived at the entrance of Sweet Apple Acres.

"Well here we are." Twilight said looking at Night Shadow.

"Does your friend have enough trees; there must be hundreds of these things!" Night Shadow asked in amazement.

"Well she supplies all the apples for Ponyville, so logically there would be a lot." Twilight said.

"A lot doesn't even come close to this."

Night Shadow continued to stare in awe at the apple trees until a certain orange pony snuck up on him.

"Well howdy there partner, what brings you to Sweet Apple Acres?" Applejack asked in her usual southern accent.

Night Shadow would have responded if he had not gotten scared out of his hooves.

"T-Twilight, who is that?" Night Shadow asked stuttering behind her.

Twilight chuckled at this and then responded. "This is my friend, Night Shadow meet Applejack, Applejack, Night Shadow." She said calmly.

"Sorry about scaring you there, I see you're a friend of Twilight. Um… are you from out of town?" Applejack said apologetically.

"Yeah… let's go with that, but me and Twilight just met if that's what you mean." Night Shadow said.

His stomach began to grumble loudly, making him blush out of embarrassment.

"I'm so sorry if this sounds rude, but can you make me some food. I don't have any money to pay you with…"

"Not a problem sugar cube, this one is on me." Applejack said happily as she interrupted him.

"Just like that? I mean you're not angry or anything for me not having any money?" Night Shadow asked with a worried expression.

"No, I would do that for one of Twilight's friends or just about anypony." Applejack said leading them on through the orchard.

"Thank you Applejack, I swear I will repay you back tenfold." He said trying to reassure Applejack his gratitude.

"Aw shucks, how kind of you, but it's not necessary." Applejack said, now blushing.

"No, no, I insist." Night shadow said pressing on his exchanging gratification payment.

"Well then, I will just introduce you to the rest of my family." Applejack chimed, smiling happily.

"The… the rest?" Night Shadow asked bearing a frightened look on his face.

Applejack then turned around and whistled towards the barn. Just then all of Applejack's family charged out from random directions and carried Night Shadow to a nearby table. After all the chaos and introductions he received from each member of the Apple family, he was finally able to sit down. Before him were plenty of apple-based products, which was able to feed all of Ponyville. Night Shadow took no time at all to start devouring everything in front of him at an insane speed.

"Um, Twi, how long has it been since he last had food?" Applejack asked with a surprised glance at the lavender mare.

"He… never… told me, Applejack." Twilight responded to Applejack's question and was just as surprised as her; Spike on the other hand didn't seem to care.

Night Shadow was on the verge of eating his fourteenth apple pie until he was yanked away by Twilight.

"Well Applejack, thanks for everything, we will come back tomorrow." Twilight said, dragging Night shadow away from the table.

"Okay, see y'all tomorrow." Applejack waved her hoof.

"Hey, I wanted to eat that!" Night Shadow said with a look disappointment.

"I think, no, I know you have had enough. Come along Spike, we're leaving." Twilight said.

Twilight still had to drag Night Shadow with her magic to the next destination, where she had no idea was.

* * *

After several minutes, Twilight released her grip on Night Shadow to ask him something.

"What was that back there, you acted as if you hadn't eaten in days." Twilight said with a concerned tone.

"Ha, more like weeks. I have tried before now, but there was no way I was going to beg for food, that's just disgraceful. Converting clouds to water was also tricky, but manageable." Night Shadow said scratching his head and gave one more quick laugh.

"Oh yeah, you starved but at least your pride was intact." Twilight said glaring at him.

"Hey, I was trained to survive the worst of what Equestria had to offer and come out stronger, like griffins, fires, blizzards, and… rainbows." He said looking up in the sky.

Just then Night Shadow was hit by what looked like a rainbow bullet only to be revealed as a cyan coat pegasus with a rainbow mane and tail.

"Rainbow Dash, why would you do that?!" Twilight asked almost shouting.

"I was practicing my latest trick for the wonderbolts until I got carried away, and your coltfriend just happened to be in my way."

"Coltfriend!" Twilight shouted, blushing furiously.

"Colt what?" Night Shadow asked as he pushed Rainbow Dash off of him. "I can't really hear anything right now, everything is all fuzzy."

Rainbow Dash would have informed him, but burst out laughing at Night Shadow's new mane and tail style. It was full of mud, dirt, and it shot out like a porcupine's spikes. Spike burst out laughing as well and even Twilight let out a few chuckles.

"Here let me fix that for you. Now you can say that the one and only Rainbow Dash helped you with a… slight problem." Rainbow Dash said still trying to hold in her laughter.

"Actually, the last time you did that…" Twilight couldn't finish her sentence in time before Rainbow Dash blow dried his mane with a small tornado.

"I don't see a difference." Rainbow Dash commented after finishing.

"That's because you didn't use water." Twilight said as she levitated him over to a nearby lake and dunked him in several times.

"Will you two stop this, I can fix it myself!" Night Shadow shouted as he broke the spell around him with his own magic without thinking and crashed into the water again. He emerged with his black, wet mane brushing along the grass. "Okay, I will only show you all this once, now what I do first is uh… no that's not right." Night Shadow said as he continued to fumble around with his mane for a minute.

"You don't even have a style for your mane do you?" Twilight asked still watching him fumble with his mane.

"Yes I do, it's called… natural?" Night Shadow said, now questioning himself, he never touched his mane with a comb, he just let the wind do it for him. The two mares in front of him were even wondering if he ever heard of a brush before.

"That's it whoever you are, I am going to fix your mane and there's nothing stopping me this time." Dash said, now determined.

"Wait you two, we don't have to fight." Twilight said with concern for her friends.

"Don't worry Twilight, this will be over in ten seconds flat." Night Shadow said with a newfound confidence.

"Hey that's my line!" Rainbow said as she tackled him.

They began to wrestle, trying to pin each other down. This continued for more than ten seconds before Twilight shouted at them.

"Night Shadow, Rainbow Dash, stop fighting! This is not how ponies become friends!"

"So that's your name huh, it's not as cool as mine though." Rainbow said, having Night Shadow pinned to the ground on his stomach. He then used his magic to lift her off gently, only to lunge at her in mid-air knocking her on her back with his hoof on her chest.

"Really, I think it's twenty percent cooler than yours actually." Night Shadow said with a smirk on his face.

"Stop doing that!" Rainbow said with an annoyed look.

"Stop doing what, my magic or your phrases? Because you're going to have to make me." Night Shadow stated now with a playful smile.

"Oh, you're so going down!" Rainbow said before she grabbed Night Shadow's hoof that was pinning her down with her forelegs, flipping him over her head making him land on his back.

Just then a magical bubble envelopes the both of them making them float and unable to move, but it wasn't coming from Twilight.

"What are you two ruffians doing?" Rarity asked as she emerged from an ally nearby.

"Oh, I'm glad you came when you did Rarity, things were getting out of hoof." Twilight said a bit relieved.

"No darling, what's out of hoof is that mane, just look at it, it's a fashion disaster." Rarity said with clear disgust in her voice.

"Rarity, we went over this already." Rainbow said rolling her eyes.

"Not you… him." Rarity said, pointing a hoof at Night Shadow.

"HEY, it's not that bad ok, just put me down and I will be out of your hair." Night Shadow said with pleading eyes.

"My hair? What about your hair, we must get it fixed." She said looking at his mane inattentively.

"Where are you taking me, put me down, Twilight, help me!" Night Shadow yelled panicking.

Spike subconsciously started to follow them with hearts in his eyes as they disappeared from sight. Twilight realizing what just happened, chased after them.

* * *

Twenty-five minutes later

"This one looks too bulky, find a new one in the closet will you Spike." Rarity said waving Spike off toward the closet.

"Of course, Rarity." Spike said without question.

"Well what do you think, Night Shadow?" Rarity said behind him, laying more clothes on top of him.

"Rarity, we've been through ten different suits, twenty-five different hats, and five hair styles on my mane, can you please give me a break." Night shadow said getting close to collapsing onto the ground.

"Oh but a fashionista never sleeps dear, now you were telling me where you were from." Rarity says while trying to think of a new way to do his mane.

"I was?" 'Ok Night Shadow, no pony can know of your past, just say a place and that should be enough.' He thought before speaking again. "Um, I'm from... Canterlot?"

"You are from Canterlot too!" Rarity said with joy.

"Yeah... 'Oh great.'" Night Shadow thought.

"Twilight is from there as well, and speaking of Twilight" Rarity said, turning to the door.

Twilight was half-way through the door before she was noticed.

"Twilight, what do you think about his suit, do you think it's too bulky?" Rarity said in doubt.

While Rarity was turned around, Night Shadow mouthed the words "help me" to Twilight. Unfortunately for him, she didn't get the message.

"Wow Rarity, I love what you did with his mane."

Night Shadow couldn't help but face-hoof.

"It makes him look cute, especially with the suit." Twilight complimented.

He was now in a dilemma of embarrassment and hopelessness until Spike walked in with the suit that was requested.

"Oh good the suit is here, Night Shadow try this on as well." Rarity then notices the suit has emeralds on it. "Emeralds, what was I thinking when I made this, let me get this some rubies!"

Rarity then ran out of the room, but she wasn't the only one. Twilight swung around when she heard the window crash behind her only to find a note that said, "Sorry about that" On the ground where Night Shadow used to be.

"Spike I'm going to find him, you stay and help Rarity… shouldn't be too hard right." Twilight said sarcastically as she ran out the door. Spike didn't respond as he stared off into the hallway where Rarity had disappeared to.

* * *

"Can you please come back down from there; I'm not trying to hurt you." Night Shadow said looking up into a tree. "I just need some directions and you seem normal compared to everypony else I have spoken to, so please come back down."

There was no movement or even noise for about a minute until Night Shadow became frustrated.

"FINE be that way, I didn't need your help anyways, I will just leave you up there!" Night Shadow said, about to walk away until he heard Twilight calling for him.

"Change of plans." Night Shadow said, teleporting next to the pony in the tree only to have her fly back down at the sound of Twilight voice.

"Oh thank goodness you're here, this strange looking stallion was trying to ask me all these questions and he scared me so much that didn't know what to do." The pony said, timidly.

"That was probably Night Shadow, do you know where he is." Twilight said.

"He's… he's in the tree over there." The yellow Pegasus pointed in the direction.

"Night Shadow, get down from there, I want you to meet my other friend." Twilight said.

"Do I have to be friends with everypony in this town?" Night Shadow said sarcastically.

"Night Shadow, this is Fluttershy." Twilight said happily.

"Ah ha! Night Shadow shouted as if he found the cure for mad pony disease. "That's why you were all shy and stuff, it's in your name! I should have known!"

Fluttershy was taken aback from this and hid behind Twilight.

"Is… Is he always this loud?" Fluttershy whispered.

"Well he is forty feet high in a tree… wait FORTY FEET HIGH IN A TREE! Night Shadow get down from there or you will hurt yourself! You're not exactly built for flying you know!" Twilight shouted at him.

"Me hurt myself? Don't make me laugh…well actually that happens all the time but that's not the point!" Night Shadow said as he made fun of himself. He then started to lean on a branch that wasn't exactly stable. "The point is, I have been climbing trees since I was a young colt, and I'm a unicorn. I could always teleport or levitate my way out. What could possibly go wrong?"

As soon as those exact words were spoken, the branch he was leaning on instantly snapped and he fell head first into the ground.

"Oh no Night Shadow! I told you that you would hurt yourself!" Twilight yelled as she trotted towards him.

"Is it happy hour yet?" Night Shadow said as he tried to get up only to fall on his head again. "There are stars everywhere Twi!" He said before he blacked out.

"Will he be okay? I think he's hurt really bad." Fluttershy said to Twilight.

"Don't worry; I have dealt with head injuries before, just need to get him to my house so I can concentrate on it. Besides, he's really hard headed." She said to cheer up Fluttershy, who was still worried.

Twilight levitated Night Shadow onto her back after saying goodbye to Fluttershy and left to her tree house. It wasn't long before Twilight got to her house, mainly because she teleported. She instantly got to work and helped Night Shadow, who was still unconscious, into the guest room. The room was dark with only a candle as a light source, it would have to do for now.

"Step one." She said to herself as she tucked the unicorn into the guest bed.

After taking his temperature and hooking him up to a heart monitor she became a bit worried for him.

"Both are abnormally high for just a head injury. There must be something else going on that I can't explain." Using her magic, she attempted to alleviate some of the tension and possible pain she thought he was experiencing in his head, but to no avail.

"Whatever is going on in there, it is pretty serious." She said as she wiped away the beads of sweet forming on his forehead.

The devices on his legs started to glow purple and hum silently as she continued to work.

"Please be okay Night Shadow, there's so much we can learn from each other." She said as she slowly dozed off next to him.

* * *

Night Shadow was wandering around in a black void deep in his mind. This would typically happen to him when he sleeps or in this case, became unconscious. The only thing he could do in this situation was wait until he woke up; however, it was not that simple for this particular unicorn.

"You were always a failure Night Shadow; you deny your true potential and who you really are. Why not use your gifts for yourself instead of hiding it away from all those that would shudder at your power." A familiar voice echoed in the darkness in Night Shadow.

"You can't control me to do your bidding! I will not hurt others for our past mistakes." Night Shadow yelled.

"OUR MISTAKES!" The dark voice boomed through the invisible walls of his mind. "May I remind you that it is YOU who is in charge of this body Night Shadow, not me! I only provide the advice necessary for you to succeed, but you ignore me, you shun me farther into the empty shell of your mind! This is why you constantly fail to achieve greatness in this world, you're nothing but a red carpet everypony who is going to be walked all over and taken advantage of! Am I supposed to just sit here and watch this happen before my eyes?!" The dark voice boomed.

"Do you have to yell, it's not like you will change my mind that way." Night Shadow said with an uninitiated look.

"As you wish." A figure emerged from the darkness into the small spectrum of light surrounding Night Shadow. He was an exact replica of himself, from hair to the tail. The only difference was he was paler and had blood red eyes.

"Are you happy now, oh wait, you're never happy." He said as he laughed maniacally.

"Ha ha, very funny, so you never even told me your name, or did you steal that from me too?" Night Shadow countered.

"My name will be known in time, to you and all of Equestria when I'm done with you." The dark pony said.

"Now, now, no need to be like that." A much calmer voice said behind the darker clone of Night Shadow. He looked like him as well, but only lighter and with bright blue eyes.

"Oh look, are you here to preach to us." The darker one said with a smirk.

"You would be right if it wasn't for the situation." The lighter unicorn said. "Anyways, Night Shadow should be free to select his own path without you interfering with his emotions and thoughts, it's not called free will for a reason you know." The blue eyed pony said.

"Guys please stop, you're giving me a headache!" Night Shadow finally shouted.

"Shut up Night Shadow, you're too weak to act anyway..." The darker one then placed his hoof on Night Shadow's forehead. "This is why I will be taking over FOR YOU!"

Just then Night Shadow awoke abruptly and screamed out at the top of his lungs. Twilight, being shot out of the bed, experienced a wave of fear as she witnessed the purple aura begin to surround him like a fast twister of light. She had no idea how to respond as the purple aura was being dominated by red aura and his eyes changed from purple to bright red. Night Shadow started to levitate in the air as the room was being torn apart by the raw destructive power.

She was about to use her magic to attempt to calm him down until the devices on Night Shadow flared bright red and stopped the screeching unicorn. Slowly floating back down, the devices' colors changed from bright red to purple once again. Only when his eyes went back to normal did Twilight decide to try to talk to him.

"What in all of equestria just happened?!" She asked as if she saw a ghost.

"What just happened?" Night Shadow asked Twilight as if she knew.

"That's what I asked you!" Twilight yelled.

Night Shadow then looked at the devices on his fore-legs and it came to him.

"Oh my gosh, are you ok, I'm so sorry it happens at random, please don't hate me." He said with a frightened look on his face.

"No, its fine, you're just full of surprises. You should be lucky Rarity didn't cut your hair or your head would have been in a lot worse condition." She said with a chuckle.

"Well she tried to; I had to enchant my hair so she couldn't cut it, you could say it was a close cut." Twilight started laughing like he told a really good joke. Night Shadow smiled but not because of the joke, but from her response.

"Oh, and speaking of surprises." Twilight said as she casually walked to the exit and bucked the door open to reveal the pink pony he met earlier.

"Surprise!" The pink pony shouted. Night Shadow was taken aback by the sure strangeness of this mare, but considering the events earlier, this was normal to him, or so he thought.

"Hi, I'm Pinkie Pie and I made this party just for you, were you excited, were you, were you, were you?" Night Shadow looked at Twilight for an answer that he should give, she replied with a nod.

"Yeah… very surprised." He said sarcastically as he walked over to meet her. It was then he noticed multiple groups of ponies in Twilight's home. "Wait, how did you have time to organize this Twilight?" Twilight was nowhere to be found in the crowd.

"Oh a lot of things can happen off screen." Pinkie said to Night Shadow who was left confused and intrigued.

"How did you do that?" Night Shadow asked.

"I will tell you later, but first we have a party to celebrate!" Pinkie shouted. "I invited everypony too, and since you hit your head I thought I would make it a welcome to ponyville, get well soon party!"

"How did you know I hit my head?" Night Shadow said amazed.

"Well that one was easy; you have a big bump on your head, you kind of look like a bicorn." She said laughing. Night Shadow, however, felt a wave of embarrassment wash over him at the statement.

"Don't worry about it, this party is about you remember." Pinkie said to cheer him up. "Besides, everypony is here to meet you personally."

"Everypony!?" Night Shadow almost shouted.

"Yeah, I said that several sentences ago silly… did I say them right?" Pinkie said looking up.

"Oh great." Night Shadow mumbled.

After being introduced to all of the ponies in Ponyville and then some, the party officially began with a bang as Pinkie shot her party cannon. There was lots of food, games, and of course music to it all. Celestia had already lowered the sun for the moon to appear by the time everypony left. Both Twilight and Night Shadow could agree on something for once, it was some party, which they would have to clean up after.

"That was amazing!" Night Shadow shouted, still hyper from all the sweets. In addition to this his horn would not stop glowing. "I think I'm going to stay a bit longer in town until I decide if I should leave or not."

"I just realized you don't have a place to stay for tonight." Twilight said.

"Oh don't worry, I can just find a tree to sleep under outside, it doesn't bother me." Night Shadow said reassuringly.

"You know, that my house is technically a tree?" Twilight said rubbing the back of her neck.

"Oooohhh I get it, you want me to sleep under this tree outside." Night Shadow said, causing Twilight to face hoof.

"No you oaf, you can sleep here, I have a spare room you can use. That is, until you decide if you want to stay or not." Twilight shouted.

"Well... um… about that…" He was soon cut off by Spike entering into the room with a scroll in his claw.

"Twilight, Twilight!" Spike shouted showing her the scroll. "It's a letter for you, but it's not from Princess Celestia."

"Let me see it." Twilight said as she levitated it in front of her for everyone to see.

'Dear Twilight,

We are sorry for such short notice, but there has been a recent disturbance that needed our attention. An old foe has returned but has eluded us for the time being; however this is not the reason for this letter. You have been assigned to be in charge of the winter moon celebration that will take place in Ponyville seven days from now. This celebration is exactly like the summer sun celebration only with the moon and a different season in which we shall raise the moon instead of the sun. Your organizing skills shall be most useful for your assignment, and expect a pleasant surprise tomorrow.

Signed,

Princess Luna.'

"This is great Twilight." Spike said, reassuring her after seeing her worried reaction to the letter.

"What did she mean when she said an old foe has returned?" Twilight asked confused only to find Night Shadow jump inbetween her and Spike.

"Oh Twilight, don't worry about it." Night Shadow laughed nervously as he took the letter. "Besides, you have more important things to do like this celebration Princess Luna has told you about." He continued to laugh nervously.

"So do you know who this new enemy might be?" Twilight asked Night Shadow who started sweating. "Do you have a fever Night Shadow?" Twilight said.

"Nope… haha… just tired… haha… I'm going to bed, good night." He said in a hurry as he closed the door to his new room.

"He was weird." Spike said as he walked up to his room.

"To be honest Spike, we fall into that category sometimes as well." Twilight said out loud as she lay in bed wondering where to begin with everything.

She then recalled the prediction made by future Night Shadow about this event, wondering if this old foe will cause the tragedy seven days from now. Many thoughts went through her head before she finally fell asleep.


	3. Chapter 2

**_WARNING: If you're allergic or prone to rage at: Oc's, black ponies, overused memes, pairing, funny jokes, the color red, fourth wall breaking, minor violence, filler, and cake, read at your own discretion… enjoy the fanfic._**

**_(Author's notes: Hi everypony, I hope you like the story so far. Anyways new chapters will be posted every Saturday unless something happens "Which I will try to inform you of." So yeah here you go.)_**

Chapter 2: Old Feelings Return

Six days before the incident…

Night Shadow awoke after having a pleasant dream of nothing only to find that it was freezing in his room. He sat on the bed, blinked a few times, and fell back on the pillow with a thud.

"Why me, I hate the cold." He groaned as he slowly got out of his bed.

Making his way to the dark living room, he made a list of things that he was going to do today. It mainly consisted of: getting up, surviving, and finding a place to sleep.

"Oh yeah, I promised to help Applejack today." He looked at a clock through the darkness of the room. "Five o'clock in the morning? It must be broken." He concluded as he approached the door. "I hope Twilight doesn't try to turn the town over just to find me again," he opened the door with his hoof, "She does look a bit…what the!" He yelled, staring straight into a wall of white.

"Is… is this a portal?" He wondered as he slowly touched the wall with his hoof. "It's so cold, what are you made of!" He yelled at the wall, causing it to fall on him with a thud. "No please, I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings, I know how it feels just let me go!" He pleaded to the now collapsed wall.

"What's all the yelling about?" Twilight asked as she walked down the stairs.

"Oh, I don't know Twilight." Night Shadow said sarcastically. "It's just that this thing is eating me!"

Twilight examined what this "Thing" was that had buried Night Shadow up to his neck.

"So this was the surprise Luna wrote about in the message." She said.

"What are you talking about?" Night Shadow asked abruptly.

"The stuff you're in, it's just vapor composed primarily of water exposed to-"

"You mean snow, right Twilight?" Night shadow asked, cutting her off and leaving her confused.

Night Shadow's horn glowed faintly as the snow around him melted into water. Not wanting to leave a mess, he converted the water into an ice cube and placed it next to the door.

"But, but, how could you possibly know what snow is and still be afraid of it. You even said you could tolerate blizzards." Twilight said dumbfounded.

"Two things: one, I knew what snow was, not what it looked or felt like. And second, do you know you're really cute when you're confused." Night Shadow said bluntly.

Twilight was instantly reminded of what the future Night Shadow said during his short time with her, overlooking the compliment completely.

"Anyways, I'm going to borrow a coat from your closet; I hope you don't mind, Twi." Night Shadow said as he walked to her closet in the back of the living room.

"You won't find anything in there but dresses, it would be better to buy one." Twilight said.

"That's a good idea Twilight, except I don't have… any money." Night Shadow exaggerated to her as he threw clothing one by one behind him in all directions.

"Hey, do you expect me to clean up after you mister?" Twilight said as her frustration level skyrocketed.

"Well, you are a mare, isn't that your job?" Night Shadow asked innocently.

"I can't believe I'm hearing this from you!" Twilight said as her face turned red.

"Ooo, what is this?!" Night Shadow shouted, taking out a black furry object from the closet.

"You better… what, I never bought that!" Twilight yelled as she watched him put it on like a colt getting a new toy for his birthday.

As she examined the object, she discovered that it was a huge, black, trench coat. Night Shadow then ran towards the convenient mirror in the room to see himself.

"I… look… amazing!" Night Shadow shouted as he did a pose in the mirror. Even on his hind legs, the coat was still long enough to touch the ground.

"What is it about you that makes me laugh?" Twilight asked herself.

"It's the coat Twilight… mares love the buckin' coat! Well, I am off to help Applejack, see you later." He said as he charged out the door.

"You still need to clean this up!" Twilight shouted out the door, but he was long gone. "UH, at least he keeps his promise. Spike, come down here and help me with this mess."

* * *

Applejack was already awake when there was a knock on her door. Unsure of who it was that could be at her door so early, she cautiously looked through the peep hole.

"Hey, it's me, Night Shadow, open up." He said as he put his dark violet eye into the peep hole, startling Applejack for a moment.

"I'm surprised that a complete stranger would go out of his way to help me." Applejack said as she opened the door for him to come inside.

"Just want to help out a friend, so is there anything you need done?" He asked.

"Well… there are some barrels-"

"BARRELS!" Night Shadow shouted randomly at Applejack, who in turn stood worried.

"Sorry, I have a random hatred against barrels..." He said rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

"Anyways, they are very heavy and worth a lot, so only carry one or two." She said before she pointed over a hill.

"Easy enough, this shouldn't take long." Night Shadow said walking out of the door.

"There are about one-hundred barrels, so Big Macintosh will accompany you, y'all be careful now." She said.

Night Shadow proceeded to move through a snowy trail that went around a big hill in search for the barrels, what he found was a red stallion as tall as he was resting by a tree.

"Uh hi, do you know where the BARRELS are?" Night Shadow asked him, twitching.

"Eeyup." He responded.

"Uhh... did I just wake you up?" Night Shadow asked apologetically.

"Nope."

"Are you, Big Macintosh?"

"Eeyup."

"Can you say anything else besides that?"

"Nope." The red stallion said with a smile. "And please, call me Big Mac."

"Well Big Mac, you don't seem that big to me." Night Shadow said almost disappointed.

"You're the same height as I am." Big Mac said with a straight face.

Night Shadow then walked up to Big Mac and positioned himself next to him. Big Mac was right, they were the same height.

"I have more hair though… so about these things we're suppose to move move." Night Shadow said nervously, looking at the barrels.

"You mean barrels." Big Mac said in his usual calm tone.

"Yes those things… those evil wooden abominations... Applejack said to move them to the barn." Night Shadow said pointing at the dirt trail he traveled on.

"Okay, so, shall we get started?" Big Mac asked, spitting out the straw of hay from his mouth.

"Hold on there, Big Rush, I was thinking we could make this more interesting, a game perhaps." Night Shadow said putting his hoof on his chest. "The first one that gets the most barrels to the barn wins, and to make it fair I will not use my magic, deal?" He asked.

"Eeyup." Big Mac said bluntly.

"You need to get out some more." Night Shadow said before teleporting next to the barrels and jumping onto one. "Umm... that doesn't count."

Big Mac, on the other hoof, just walked casually next to him, uncaring.

"So Big Mac, are you ready to become a big wimp!" Night Shadow said in hopes of firing him up.

"Nope." Big Mac said normally.

Night Shadow let out a sigh at his reaction.

"Fine, be that way." Night Shadow said as he lifted a barrel to his back. Big Mac quickly followed.

"This will be our starting line. On the count of three, we go." Night Shadow stated as he assumed a sprinting position.

"One…" He said as he cracked his neck left and right.

"Two…" Big Mac took a deep breath as he took a sprinting position.

"Three!" Night Shadow shouted as he rocketed forward leaving a trail of dust behind.

It took him thirty seconds to reach the barn to put the package where it belonged. He then looked over his shoulder.

"Ha, he might have strength, but at a cost of speed. He probably hasn't even made it half-way yet." Night Shadow said out loud before hearing the sound of a cough behind him.

"Soooo, what took ya so long?" Big Mac asked as he leaned on the barn door with a grin. "Not so talkative as before are ya."

Night Shadow didn't turn around or make any gestures, however the shiver down his spine and beads of sweat that formed on his muzzle were enough to prove to Big Mac that he had made his point. There are two things Night Shadow hates, losing and being out-bested at his own game, not to mention both at the same time. The only thing going through Night Shadow's head was the word "run." He then took off at top speed to get a head start from his opponent.

"It's a trick, it has to be! What is he using, magic, worm holes, hax's?" Night Shadow thought until a red blur appeared next to him at equal speed.

"Hi, how ya doin'?" Big Mac said running next to him.

"That's… not… possible!" Night Shadow yelled horrified as he increased his speed, being followed quickly by Big Mac.

The two reached the barrels at the same time, quickly picking up a barrel and dashing back from where they came. Both competitors went back and forth, out-doing the other with speed and maneuverability. Taking it even further, they began taking two barrels, then three, four, and at max, five at the same time. It ended when both reached the barn and set down the last barrel.

"It's… a… tie." Night Shadow said panting.

"Eeyup." Big Mac said sweating while Night Shadow stared at him frustrated.

He then heard a loud yawn from a nearby tree; looking up, he saw a blue pony sleeping on a branch above him. Without thinking, he cast a spell on the rainbow tail of the pony to pull the pony down on her face.

"Hey I was busy doing something." The Pegasus said rubbing her head.

"Rainbow Dash what are you-"

"Busy… busy doing what?" Night Shadow said mockingly and cutting off Big Mac.

"Well clearly I was busy... napping." She said, pointing to a tree branch with a pillow and blanket.

"You call that busy?" Big Mac said in a mono-tone.

"I'm sure he thinks that's busy in his own little world." Night Shadow said aside to Big Mac.

"Hey, I'm a mare you know." Rainbow Dash said annoyed.

"Oh I'm sorry, it's hard to tell with the short mane and all." Night Shadow said pointing out her hair.

Rainbow chuckled at his comment.

"And how about your mane, it's too long, and don't get me started on how it looks!" She countered back.

"What about my awesome hair?" Night Shadow asked as he stood there proudly and dramatically, flipping his hair with his hoof. Rainbow simply stood there with a deadpan face.

"Anyways, while you were preoccupied with your "busy" work, me and Big Mac were actually working our flanks off." Night Shadow said, informing her.

"Well what took you so long? If I was doing this, it would have taken only half the time to complete." She said avoiding eye contact from Night Shadow.

"You're kidding right? We were carrying heavy barrels to and from in less than thirty seconds, not to mention carrying them five-by-five and in the cold weather." Night Shadow said frustrated.

"You're talking to the fastest flyer in all of Equestria, it would be filly's play." Rainbow Dash said pridefully.

"Oh that's it!" Night Shadow said as he looked at one of the barrels he had just carried to the barn, conjured an exact replica, and dropped it in front of Rainbow Dash with a loud thud causing some snow to hit her face.

"Carry this over that hill and back in less than twenty seconds and if you do this well, you might convince me." Night Shadow said doubtfully.

"Is that all I have to do? Pfft, too easy." She said as she picked up the barrel with a faint purple glow. She then looked at Night Shadow as he chuckled to himself.

"I wouldn't be laughing if I were you." She said giving him a glare.

"Oh… but I will." Night Shadow looked at her with a smirk.

Rainbow dash rolled her eyes at him and picked up the conjured barrel. Little did she know was that the barrel itself, was rigged by Night Shadow. She started to wobble as she picked it up.

"Not as light as you thought, is it Dashie?" Night Shadow asked.

"Don't call me that." Rainbow dash said annoyed as she lifted off the ground.

She made it about half way over the hill before Night Shadow's horn began to glow brightly, dropping the full weight of the barrel on Rainbow dash causing her to fall on her face and the barrel to bust.

"Have a nice fall, Rainbow Crash." Night Shadow said laughing on the ground.

"Shut up." Rainbow dash said as her voice was muffled in the snow.

"That wasn't very nice, Night Shadow." Big Mac said to him.

"I know, but sometimes humiliation is the only way to reach somepony." Night Shadow said lifting Rainbow Dash to her hooves. "Somepony very stubborn with snow in her mane."

"You cheated Night Shadow, you did something to the barrel while I wasn't looking!" Rainbow dash shouted at him.

"Whoa whoa whoa… hold up, how did I cheat? One, I was standing here the entire time. And two, how can you see the barrel if it's on your back?" Night Shadow lied.

"I don't care, I challenge you to an iron pony competition, I hope you're ready to lose." She stated arrogantly.

"Why does it have to be iron, that's too weak for me, why can't it be steel, titanium, or adamantium?" Night Shadow asked to no one in particular.

"Don't be stupid and be ready tomorrow. Get some rest, you're going to need it." Rainbow dash said as she angrily took off.

"Ummm, Big Mac?" Night Shadow said looking back at him confused.

"Yeah?" Big Mac said.

"What's an iron pony competition?"Night Shadow asked.

* * *

Twilight Sparkle had just finished cleaning the mess that Night Shadow left behind, with a little help from Spike of course. The room was also heated and lighted with candles just for him.

"Well that should fix the problem for him." She said checking off the list she was holding before there was a knock at the door.

"Spike, will you get that for me!" She shouted.

"You're closer, Twilight, why don't you do it!?" Spike shouted back from upstairs.

"Just do as I say, Spike, I'm very busy!" Twilight yelled while she dusted off a table.

"Okay." Spike said going towards the door. As he opened the door, a blue blur forced the door open sending him into the wall.

"Rainbow Dash, what did I tell you about kicking doors open?" Twilight asked, quickly pulling Spike off the wall.

"Yeah, yeah, I didn't fly all the way here for a lecture Twilight. I came here to talk about your coltfriend." Rainbow Dash said.

"He's not my coltfriend, Rainbow. How many times must I tell you?!" Twilight shouted.

"Fine, fine, he's not your colt friend." Rainbow Dash said rubbing her ears. "Do you want him to be?" She asked.

Twilight glared fiercely into rainbow's eyes for a good five seconds before another voice, accompanied by a knock, came from the door.

"Hey, Twilight, it's Night Shadow and this is crazy, but I'm back from work, so open up maybe. Wow that sounded stupid." He said behind the door.

"Well I will just ask him then." Rainbow said before dashing towards the door.

"Oh no you don't." Twilight said before she yanked Dash's tail back with her magic. "You can't just ask him that."

"Why not Twilight, are you scared he would say no?" Rainbow Dash asked, struggling against the magical grip.

"No… I mean I'm very busy with the celebration coming up soon and I just don't have time for that right now." Twilight said trying to convince her.

"Ah ha, so you are interested in him!" Rainbow Dash said as if she won the Ponyville jackpot.

"No, that's not what I meant." Twilight said as her face turned red.

The arguments continued on until spike opened the door for Night Shadow.

"Are you two play fighting, because I want in on this." Night Shadow declared boldly. "And Dashy, come to admit defeat already?"

"No, I came here to umm, ask… stuff, ask about stuff." Rainbow Dash said struggling to find an excuse.

"Like what do you mean by… 'stuff'?" Night Shadow asked.

"Like none of your business stuff… I'm leaving now." Rainbow Dash said walking out the door. "By the way Night Shadow… do you live here by any chance?"

Night Shadow looked at her dumbfounded before answering.

"Uhh, yeah I guess, if she hasn't gotten bored of me that is, or if I decide to stay here." He said.

"Oh, how convenient for the two of you." Rainbow Dash chuckled before flying off.

"What was that about?" Twilight said to herself a bit loudly.

"She's just mad about me proving her wrong by blowing up the barrel on her back, so she challenged me to some competition about iron ponies." Night Shadow said walking to the kitchen.

"What! She challenged you to that, you need to prepare yourself! She's one of the best athletes in all of Equestria and you… are going to the kitchen why?!"

Night Shadow walked out with a piece of chocolate cake.

"I was hungry and you had this in that cold box thing of yours." Night Shadow said stuffing his face in the cake. "You also need more food, because you ran out.

"How? I just went to the store, there should be plenty of food." Twilight said before screaming at the sight before her. The fridge was completely empty of anything edible, even the ice was gone.

"You… you ate all my food!" She yelled at Night Shadow. "Now I have to buy more because you don't have money."

"I… I don't know what to say besides, that food was delicious!" Night Shadow said as he finished the cake, licking his lips.

"GO TO YOUR ROOM!" Twilight yelled at him angrily. Night Shadow's ears flopped down and he whimpered sadly as he walked to his room closing the door behind him.

The rest of Twilight's day consisted of grocery shopping and a stress relieving walk in the park, accomplishing nothing for the upcoming event that is the Winter Moon Celebration.

**_(I know what your thinking... Night Shadow's a #$%^&%# isn't he.)_**


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Iron Pony Competition

Five days before the incident….

The snowy weather of winter did not let up until about 11:00 am, the same time Night Shadow was outside training for his recent challenge. He chose the location of a field surrounded by trees because of its peacefulness and security from those that could potentially sneak up on him. Continuing his training for three more hours, it became apparent that his opponent had forgotten.

"Where in the heavenly hay bale is that darn rainbow pony?!" Night Shadow wondered, pacing back and forth in the snow. "She said she would be here by now… or did she even give a time? No matter, if she's not going to show up, I will make her show up."

Night Shadow's horn started to glow dark purple as he said those words.

"Now how did this spell work again? I think it was: sense out target, change location of target, bring target in said spot… Okay, I hope that's it…" Night Shadow said without confidence.

Doing just as he said, a rainbow pony landed behind him indicating that the spell worked.

"So Rainbow Dash, you thought you could get away from what you started?" Night Shadow paused for an answer smirking.

"How many times must I tell everypony, my name… is Rainbow BLITZ, get it right!" He said angrily as he flew off.

"Sorry, I thought you were somepony else!" Night Shadow shouted back to him. "Apparently I needed to add more detail: stubborn, competitive, and… oh yeah, female." Night shadow said to himself.

Surely enough, he finally got the right pony he was looking for after several other misunderstandings with other ponies of the same color or similar names.

"It's about time!" Night Shadow shouted. "I have never been so happy to see you; do you know how many times I have been yelled at today? Like over nine-thousand times Dashie, that's like nine-thousand, plus one."

"Don't call me Dashie, no one calls me Dashie!" She said getting into Night Shadow's face.

"HI, DASHIE!" A familiar but sometimes annoying voice shouted, resulting in Night Shadow bursting out laughing.

"Pinkie Pie, I was trying to make a point to him." Rainbow Dash said turning to face her.

"Well, why would you want to make a point silly, and shouldn't you be practicing for your competition?" Pinkie asked happily.

"The only thing that I practiced is flying tricks and stunts. Everything else is a piece of cake." Rainbow Dash said to Pinkie.

"Ooo, I love cake. Chocolate cake with the ice cream, and sprinkles, and frosting and-"

"But Pinkie… the cake is a lie!" Night Shadow shouted cutting her off.

"That's silly, you can't eat lies… but I wonder what those taste like? Probably sour and spicy at the same time, or maybe salty but with a twist, or maybe even-"

"Pinkie, you're off subject again, and the reason I said that is because I'm a world class athlete. Everything by default will be too easy for me." Rainbow said, proudly interrupting her.

"Calm down Dashie, just because you're good at something doesn't mean you can't get better. That's how you keep your skill up and advance higher in that category; I'm sure that even the tyrants, I-I mean princesses practice their magic as well." Night Shadow said sweating.

"Wait, what do you mean by-"

"New subject Dashie, NEW SUBJECT!" Night Shadow yelled becoming paranoid, cutting off Rainbow's question.

"Wait, I just wanted to ask-"

"I didn't say anything, what are you talking about hahahahahaha, you guys, always joking around and hearing things that AREN'T TRUE!" Night Shadow said almost losing his sanity and cutting off Rainbow again.

"What are you tal-"

"YOU'RE NOT GOING TO TAKE HER AWAY FROM ME!" Night Shadow shouted before Pinkie slapped him across the muzzle.

"That was awesome, is it my turn now?" Pinkie asked excited.

"NO… but thank you Pinkie, I really needed that." Night Shadow said as his eyes readjusted from the slap. "Now on the other hoof, I'm still wondering how Pinkie even found us."

"Yeah Pinkie, how did you even know we were here?" Rainbow Dash asked puzzled.

"Well, when Night Shadow started making ponies fall from the sky, I ended up in this bush, so here I am." Pinkie said joyfully.

"How did you even fall into the category I was thinking of?" Night Shadow asked confused.

"I have no idea." Pinkie said after thinking for a bit.

"Well that escalated quickly, if you need me I will be training." Night Shadow said walking over to Rainbow Dash. "Hey Rainbow, you want to help?"

"Help how?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Just find things that are heavy and I will try to balance them, same goes for you Pinkie if you want to." Night Shadow said getting into position.

"So, let me get this straight, all we have to do is find things for you to balance?" Rainbow Dash asked in order to make sure she understood what he was getting at.

"Pretty much, but only when I say go." Night Shadow pointed out.

"He just said go!" Pinkie said, already getting objects to throw.

"No, that's not what I meant, when I say go, you go." Night shadow said waving his hooves at her.

"He just said it again!" Pinkie yelled, picking up a big stick.

"Okay, Pinkie, let's get him!" Rainbow Dash yelled as she quickly grabbed a rock.

"What have I gotten myself into?" Night Shadow said to himself bracing for impact.

One by one, objects of all shapes and sizes were flung at Night Shadow. Catching all the items, he balanced them on his back, hooves, muzzle, and even his horn. The assault continued for a good minute before even Night Shadow had enough and told them to stop. The objects collected ranged from rocks and sticks, to pianos and giant flower bags, courtesy of Pinkie.

"Pinkie Pie, where did you find an extra large pickle jar again?" Night Shadow asked while doing a hoof stand on his right foreleg.

"I don't know." Pinkie said shrugging her shoulders.

"Well, anyway, the next step is to try to distract me. Just no hitting, pushing, bucking, or any of the sort." Night Shadow said before Rainbow Dash spat in his face. "Or spitting." He said as the spit traveled off his face.

"Ooo, I have an idea!" Pinkie said whispering her plan to Rainbow Dash.

"That's perfect, oh this is going to be so awesome!" Rainbow Dash said smiling at Night Shadow who was looking up at them.

"What are you two planning?" Night Shadow asked nervously.

"You will see soon enough… or feel." Rainbow Dash said walking out of his sight along with Pinkie.

Night Shadow could do nothing but wait for the impending torture. Almost becoming impatient, he tried to talk to them to hurry up but was instantly poked with a pointy stick.

"Oww, what was that for?" Night Shadow asked before being poked in the chest.

"Shh, no talking." Pinkie said before poking him again.

"Stop stabbing me with that stick!" Night Shadow pleaded to Pinkie.

"Hey, I think its working, keep it up." Rainbow Dash whispered to Pinkie.

"I heard that and let me tell you, it's going to take a lot more to-"

Night Shadow tried to say before Rainbow's tail started to rub his nose. She continued to do this until Night Shadow sneezed, unfortunately for him his other hoof was occupied carrying a birthday cake.

"Bless you." Pinkie Pie said, smiling at him.

"Thank you, but you two should try something else." Night Shadow said regaining his balance.

"I say we tickle him." Pinkie said to Rainbow Dash before lunging at Night Shadow.

"Wait, don't Pinkie, I'm begging you!" Night Shadow said before Pinkie started to tickle him in almost every place possible. Night Shadow had to use all his strength and willpower to not fall right then and there to Pinkie's onslaught.

"You do that Pinkie; I'm just going to wait over here."

"But why Dashie?" Pinkie asked, pausing her assault.

"Because tickling is so not cool." Rainbow Dash said propping herself onto a nearby tree.

"Oh well, suit yourself." Pinkie said continuing her attack on the red unicorn.

Several minutes later

"I don't think its working." Rainbow Dash said finally getting bored.

"Well what else can we do?" Pinkie looked to Rainbow Dash for an answer who in turn stared blankly.

"I see that you girls are finally realizing that I won't fall down no matter what you do, so I win!" Night Shadow announced to both of them laughing. Pinkie looked down in defeat, but Rainbow Dash seemed to be looking off in the distance.

"Hey Twilight, we're over here!" Rainbow Dash yelled waving her hooves.

"Twilight?" Night Shadow said being distracted, before gravity got the best of him and the objects he was caring resulting in a big crash. Emerging from the rubble, he looked around for Twilight.

"I don't see her, where is she?" Night Shadow asked Rainbow Dash.

"I can tell you where she is not… here." Rainbow Dash said smiling with triumph.

"You dirty little-"

"If a white lie is what it takes to win, then I'm more than happy to do so." Rainbow Dash declared.

"The only thing white here is the snow, and you still lost despite your little trick." Night Shadow said trying to turn the tables on her.

"How? Your entire body was covered in rubble, and you want to say you won?!" Rainbow Dash shouted becoming aggravated.

"The game ended when I said I had won, therefore I still win, end of story." Night Shadow stated to her.

"You're just a sore loser." Rainbow Dash said under her breath.

"Takes one to know one, Ms. Dash." Night Shadow said, getting in her face.

"Are you two playing the angry couple game? I call therapist!" Pinkie said bouncing, raising her hoof in the air.

Night Shadow and Rainbow Dash stared at Pinkie, wondering where she got the assumption from. They both stared into each other's eyes, slowly backing away from each other and blushing.

"Uhhh, that's just wrong Pinkie, I couldn't see myself marrying her!" Night Shadow said looking away embarrassed.

"I couldn't even see myself dating him, and besides he has his eyes on Twilight." Rainbow Dash blurted out.

"What did you just say!" Night Shadow shouted in shock.

"Oh come on, it's so obvious." Rainbow Dash said to him smiling.

"I… d-don't know what you're talking about." Night shadow said stuttering and backing away.

"Really now? The way you act around her, talk to her, how you're reacting right now, and not to mention how you completely blew it in the game we just played." Rainbow pointed out.

"What do you want from me?" Night Shadow said being cornered against a tree.

"I want you to admit." Rainbow Dash said to him.

"Admit what?" Night Shadow asked, already knowing the answer.

"Admit you like Twilight Sparkle!" Rainbow yelled.

"Uh, yeah I like Starlight Sprinkle, he's a good friend of mine." Night Shadow said avoiding contact with Rainbow.

"Stop avoiding the question!" Rainbow yelled pinning Night Shadow to the tree.

"Stop harassing me with questions!" Night Shadow yelled pushing her off.

"Is this twenty questions? I love that game!" Pinkie randomly said, butting in on the argument.

"NO!" Night Shadow and Rainbow both yelled.

More arguing continued until all three of them were out of breath.

"Enough, at this rate we won't have enough energy for the competition. We will continue this conversation never." Night Shadow said walking to the heap of rubble. "Now Dashie, make yourself useful and throw these things at me."

"Can I help, please, please, please?" Pinkie asked him.

"Yes, yes you can help too." Night Shadow sighed.

"Yay! So throw things at you like this?" Pinkie asked, chucking a huge metal pole at him.

"Oh great, not again!" Night Shadow said before chopping the metal pole in half with his fore-hoof. "Yeah, like that, but wait for me to GET READY!" He shouted.

Rainbow and Pinkie could do nothing but stand in awe at what they just witnessed.

"I thought all unicorns were eggheads, yet you did that with ease and without magic." Rainbow said still in shock.

"Hey, just because some unicorns prefer to study the world around them doesn't mean we all do. It's like saying all earth ponies are just for working, or all Pegasus ponies are for weather control." Night Shadow said to Rainbow as he stood up on his hind-hooves. "Okay, now I'm ready."

"Wait, before you do your little thing again, put this on." Rainbow said taking out a blindfold.

"Rainbow Dash, how is Night Shadow here going to be able to see then silly?" Pinkie asked happily.

"That's the point Pinkie, I want to see if Night Shadow is capable of such a thing." Rainbow said looking at Night Shadow. "Unless, of course he is too chicken to do so." She said mockingly.

"I am not a Scootaloo, so give me the blindfold!" Night Shadow commanded snatching the blindfold from Rainbow. "No magic, correct?" He said putting it on.

"Correct." Rainbow said with a wicked grin. "This is going to be too easy." She whispered to Pinkie.

"I don't know Dashie, he seems very confident." Pinkie pointed out.

"Yeah he might be, but not for long." Rainbow said, holding a wooden plank.

Night Shadow stood there with his hooves close to his sides waiting for their first move. With his sense of sight gone, he could only rely on hearing and instinct as he waited patiently. He couldn't tell if a minute or an hour had passed before the first object came quickly towards him. Perking up his ears, Night Shadow located the object and with a quick punch, shattered it into pieces. Hearing a small gasp before him, all he could do was smirk at their surprise as he assumed position again. A gush of wind passed over the trio, causing a branch to fall in the distance making a loud thump, which is when Rainbow and Pinkie decided to open fire upon him. Soon all the objects lied in pieces around the blinded unicorn except one.

"Hey, Twilight?!" Rainbow called from the distance.

"Oh no, if you think I will fall for the same trick again, you are sadly mistaken." Night Shadow said.

"Night Shadow, what are you doing!?" Twilight Sparkle said behind him.

"Wait, what?!" Night Shadow said, turning around before a block of wood scattered over his head. He then fell face first into the snow before Twilight.

"Bull's eye!" Rainbow shouted.

"That's not fair." Night Shadow said muffled in the snow. "And Twilight, why are you here?" He asked getting up.

"You said that Rainbow Dash had challenged you to an Iron Pony Competition. So I'm here to take score like I did last time." Twilight said taking off his blindfold.

"And I'm the announcer!" Spike stated, standing on Twilight's back while holding a stick with a red leaf.

"There's no one to talk to out here, are you going to announce to the bushes and trees?" Night Shadow asked sarcastically.

"No, I'm going to be talking to them." Spike said pointing to Fluttershy, Rarity, and Applejack emerging from the hill.

"Oh… how convenient. Well me and Rainbow Dash are ready, so let's get this started." He said with a competitive smirk at the end of his muzzle.

* * *

Soon after, the games and equipment for the Iron Pony Competition was set up for the two challengers. At first the audience only consisted of Twilight, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Applejack with Spike being the announcer, but soon more ponies from Ponyville started to join the crowd.

"The first event is the barrel weave!" Spike announced to the crowd.

"BARRELS!" Night Shadow shouted behind him.

"Hey Night Shadow, can I talk to you for a sec?" Rainbow said pulling him aside.

"Yeah sure, what's up?" Night Shadow asked curiously.

"Let's make a bet on who will win, what do you say?" She asked.

"Now you are speaking my language Dashie, what do you have in mind?" He asked.

"Well when I win, you have to admit to anything I say… no exceptions." She said.

"When you win… HA! You mean when I win, you have to wear a fancy dress all day." He said smirking.

"Then it's settled." Rainbow said spitting into her hoof to seal the bet.

"Eww, that's disgusting!" Night Shadow said backing away.

"Just do it you chicken." Rainbow said before Night Shadow hoof-bumped her in agreement.

"Please make your way to the starting line." Twilight announced to Night Shadow.

"Ladies first, Night Shadow." Rainbow Dash said mockingly as he stepped up to the starting line.

"Losers follow." He said before Spike clicked the timer and shouted go.

Taking no time at all, Night shadow returned in the blink of an eye without bumping into a single barrel.

"What was my time Spike?" Night Shadow said panting.

"Seventeen seconds! That was Applejack's best time!" Spike said congratulating him.

Rainbow dash was up next, but was a bit hesitant and nervous.

"I would be nervous if I was fighting myself too, Dash." Night Shadow commented. "You will do fine."

"Go!" Spike shouted as Rainbow took little to no time at all to finish and return.

"How did I do?" Rainbow asked recovering.

"Fourteen seconds!" Spike shouted in amazement.

"W-what, how!?" Night Shadow said in disbelief.

"They don't call me Dash for nothing." Rainbow said rubbing it in.

"Rainbow Dash wins the barrel weave!" Twilight announced to the ever-growing crowd of ponies.

"Up next is the bucking contest!" Spike proclaimed.

"Rainbow Dash, you're up first." Twilight said to her.

"Good luck." Night Shadow said leaning on a tree.

"Who needs luck when you're Rainbow Dash?" She stated proudly.

Rainbow Dash, with her newfound confidence, went up to buck and successfully rang the bell on the high striker.

"Good job… for a mare. Now let me show you how a stallion does it." Night Shadow remarked as he approached the machine.

Taking a deep breath to focus, he turned around bucking the high striker, destroying it in the process. As the weight flew through the cloud layer, it exploded in a beautiful; display of fireworks. Rainbow sat back on her haunches in amazement.

"You get to go out with a bang, Dashie." Night Shadow said smirking.

"Night Shadow wins the bucking contest, leaving the score one-to-one." Twilight said as Fluttershy updated the score.

* * *

Night Shadow stood in the middle of a pen preparing himself for the Bronco Buck as Rainbow Dash watched from the sidelines.

"Night Shadow you're up first, and try not to hurt Spike." Twilight said smiling.

"I can't guarantee anything Twi… but for you, I will try." Night Shadow replied warmly as Spike grabbed onto his mane.

"Hey, watch the hair." Night Shadow said abruptly to Spike.

"Why me?" Spike wondered, preparing himself for the worse.

As soon as the timer was set, Night Shadow galloped towards the railing and jumped off from it. In mid-flight, he did ten back flips forcing spike to land in a nearby pile of hay.

"Gravity is a harsh mistress, Spike." Night Shadow said before noticing Twilight staring at him frustrated.

"What, I said I'd try." Night Shadow said walking to the sidelines.

"Rainbow Dash, are you ready?" Twilight asked her.

"I was born ready." Rainbow said walking towards Spike. "Ready for another pony ride?" She asked Spike.

"No…" Spike replied, nervous.

Using the strategy from last time, she bounced up and down like a jackhammer, sending Spike flying.

"Rainbow Dash wins the Bronco Buck, leaving the score two-to-one with Rainbow in the lead!" Twilight declared.

"Yeah, only barely." Night Shadow said to himself.

"And now, for the lasso contest!" Twilight announced yet again.

A lasso was given to both Night Shadow and Rainbow Dash.

"Umm, can we skip this one?" Rainbow asked Twilight already knowing the answer.

"Night shadow, can you get Spike?" Twilight asked him ignoring Rainbows question.

"Just one second." Night Shadow said as he focused on finding Spike and teleporting him back.

"Spike put this helmet on." Twilight said holding a helmet with horns with her magic.

"Do I have to do this again?" Spike asked her.

"Yes, you're the only one capable of this job, so please Spike?" Twilight asked, handing him the helmet.

"If I have to…" He said sighing, putting on the helmet and getting back into the pen.

As Spike stood awkwardly in the middle of Rainbow and Night Shadow, he wondered how he got roped into this until he flew backwards, tied to a rope.

"You know, if it wasn't for the poorly made helmet, I would have thought you were the Dragonborn… ha-ha get it." Night Shadow said, smiling to a very annoyed Spike.

"Umm… does this count?" Rainbow asked, tied to a tree watching the two of them.

"Night Shadow wins the lasso contest, putting the score at two-to-two." Twilight broadcasted to the ponies.

* * *

Rainbow Dash took the lead back in the ball bouncing contest, but Night Shadow fought fiercely to not only take the lead from Rainbow, but also win the Hay Bale Toss, Hoof Wrestling, and Football Kick. Putting the score six-to-three, leaving Rainbow no other choice.

"Ninety-seven… ninety-eight… ninety-nine!" Twilight counted, in-between the two competitors.

"Are you ready to give up?" Night Shadow said to Rainbow, doing push-ups with only one hoof.

"I... never… give… up!" Rainbow struggled to say halfway through her last push-up.

"Your mind may say no, but your muscles say otherwise Dashie. You're on your last moments, and everyone will see your loss." Night Shadow said holding off his last push-up and provoking her to see if she could actually make a comeback.

"You… won't… win this time!" Rainbow shouted before picking herself up with her wings, finishing her last rep.

"One-hundred! Rainbow wins the push-up contest putting the score at six-to-four!" Twilight said not noticing the use of Rainbow's wings.

After a crowd of ponies carried Rainbow Dash off, Night Shadow, instead of acting out of anger, simply stood there silently as they cheered Rainbow's victory, taking note of what happened. Using her newfound method, Rainbow won the next three games easily taking the lead from Night Shadow.

"I win again Night Shadow, and if you don't clean your act together, you have to admit to anything I want." Rainbow said, cleaning the mud off of her wings.

"I know what you're doing, and you might be fooling everypony else, but know this." Night Shadow said before getting into her face. "I won't stoop to your level and I will still beat you."

True to his word, Night Shadow kept up with Rainbow's score despite her advantage. Soon, after a long conflict, it came down to the concluding event to finally prove who was better.

"This is it everypony, the final event of the Iron Pony Competition!" Spike announced to the crowd of cheering ponies from practically everywhere. "The score is nineteen-to-nineteen, so the question remains, who will win the title of Iron Pony?!" He shouted. "Will it be Rainbow Dash or Night Shadow? We will soon find out!"

Both ponies grabbed the rope for the tug-of-war. The rules were common sense, first in the mud loses. The two of them pulled on the rope with all their strength. The struggle lasted for ten seconds before Night Shadow started getting the better of Rainbow. Seeing that she would lose, Rainbow used her wings to prevent her immediate loss, picking up Night Shadow in the process. Rainbow was floating above the mud pit holding onto the rope that Night Shadow was grasping onto with his mouth, waiting for him to let go.

"How is this fair!?" Night Shadow tried to say with the rope in his mouth.

"What, I can't hear you!" Rainbow said muffled by the rope.

Night Shadow, with his mouth, lunged upwards and grabbed the rope again with his hooves.

"I said how this is fair, you have been using your wings the whole time, and now you're using gravity to your advantage!" Night Shadow shouted at Rainbow.

"You never said-"

"I don't care, if you want to play like this…then so be it!" He said charging up his magic after he interrupted Rainbow.

"No… what are you doing? Rainbow asked almost frightened.

"Taking away your advantages!" Night Shadow declared to her.

"If you do that… we will both lose!" Rainbow almost said pleading.

This stopped Night Shadow almost immediately, but not permanently as he continued to charge his magic.

"I have thought about this, and I accept the consequences. I have already proven your assumption about me wrong, and proven that I truly am better."

"You are not better than me!" Rainbow said still muffled by the rope.

"Then prove it." Night Shadow said as he shot a magical spell into her wings causing them to stiffen and then levitated himself.

With years of experience in the air, Rainbow would not go down so easily. Using her wings to glide, she flew into the levitating unicorn resulting in the two crashing in the mud. Everypony stood in astonishment and silence at what they had witnessed.

"It's a tie?!" Spike shouted in amazement. "This means that they are both equally athletic."

After a few moments of stillness, Twilight made her decision.

"So it's settled… Night Shadow and Rainbow Dash… you two are both Iron Ponies!" Twilight shouted to them as the crowd cheered in excitement.

Finally emerging from the mud, Night Shadow and Rainbow Dash wiped the mud from their eyes and looked at each other almost frightened.

"You know Rainbow… that a tie is just…"

"A nicer way to say…" Rainbow Dash said joining in on his sentence.

"We both lose." They both said in unison.

* * *

Both of the "winners" washed up and helped clean up afterwards. Soon everything seemed to be back to normal, except for the two embarrassed ponies in the center of the field.

"So… Rainbow Dash… see you in a dress tomorrow." Night Shadow said avoiding eye contact.

"Yeah… I guess, so about you admitting to something?" Rainbow asked looking at a nearby tree.

"Fire away." Night Shadow said losing all resistance.

"Do you or do you not like Twilight Sparkle, and tell me the truth. I can help you with these feelings, so just tell me already and stop avoiding the question!" She asked.

Night Shadow looked toward Rainbow Dash and then looked down in defeat.

"I guess I have no choice…I-"

"Night Shadow, are you ready to go home." Twilight said approaching him, causing him to pause.

"Uhh… yeah I'm all set, let's go home." Night Shadow said before Twilight teleported them home.

Rainbow stood there alone as Celestia's sun descended behind the trees leaving her in the dark.

"Tomorrow Rainbow Dash… tomorrow you will know, just… be… patient." She said before taking off.

Unaware of anything that was in the area, a dark looking figure, hidden in the dark, retreated back into the shadows after watching the two competitors finish their dispute. A bright but silent flash appeared in the shadows before the night finally settled over Ponyville.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Diamonds are Forever

Four days before the incident…

"You're becoming friends with the Elements of Harmony!?" The darker version of Night Shadow said to the original.

"Yes, what is so bad about that? I have had friends before… I think." Night Shadow stated.

"And they have betrayed you, stabbed you in the back… What makes you think they are any different from the others?" The darker pony said as his red eyes shimmered.

"Because even you can see the good in them." The lighter version of Night Shadow said to his darker half.

"Affiliation can change at anytime you fool! Everyone's opinion of good and evil is, and always will be different." The darker pony said to the lighter one.

"In addition to that comment, you are the evil one here." Night Shadow said to his darker half.

"Fine then, if you want to fall for the same trick three times in a row, so be it!" The dark unicorn shouted, causing an echo to spread around in the small, dark atmosphere. "However… this is your last chance before I rip the gift of freewill away from your pathetic hooves." He whispered into Night Shadow's ears.

"Now, go Night Shadow." The lighter pony said, attempting to comfort him. "You have a job to do… and I believe in you." He said as his blue eyes glowed brightly. Night Shadow then started to regain consciousness.

As Night Shadow opened his eyes, he witnessed that Twilight was staring at him frightened.

"Did I frighten you again Twilight? I'm so sorry, I didn't mean-"

"It's okay Night Shadow, you don't have to apologize for everything you do." Twilight said putting her hoof in his mouth.

"I'm sorry…" Night Shadow said softly.

"Don't apologize, you've done nothing wrong." Twilight said to calm him down.

"Im afraid I will though… I have before." Night Shadow said shifting around to get out of bed.

"It's just that your bracelets started to glow red again." Twilight said a bit concerned.

"They're not bracelets Twilight, they're suppressors, they prevent me from turning into… that."

"What do you mean?" Twilight said looking at him worried.

"It means that without these, everyone would be in danger because of… me." Night Shadow said softly.

Twilight looked a bit pail as she backed away slowly.

"Twilight… that's not going to happen unless something very drastic ensued, please don't be scared." Night Shadow said approaching her slowly.

Twilight continued to back away until she hit the wall behind her, still frightened.

"And under what conditions would you…do that?" She asked still concerned.

"Only if somepony very dear to me was hurt, or if my heart was… broken." Night Shadow said as his eyes watered.

Twilight, witnessing his sorrow, dropped her fear and replaced it with pity.

"What happened to you?" She asked.

"T-they… they betrayed me, Twilight. They left me to suffer like the worthless pony I am." Night Shadow said as tears flowed down his cheeks. "I gave them my heart… and what did they do in return? They shred it before my very eyes, laughing at my sorrow and pain as I laid there to rot in the void of my own mistakes. To be swallowed up by the darkness of my own desires, never to be fulfilled or be completed. This is what they turned me into, and I can never be whole again."

Finishing his sentence, Night Shadow closed his watering eyes not being able to bear to look at Twilight's face. She on the other hoof couldn't stand to see him like this. As he continued sobbing, Twilight embraced him with a long hug.

"You don't have to feel like that ever again. Me, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Applejack and Fluttershy; we are your friends now and we will never betray you." Twilight said wiping the tears away from his eyes and then started holding him tightly.

Letting the last of his tears fall, Night Shadow hugged Twilight back.

"Promise me… promise me that you won't leave me like they did. I care about you so much, all I ask is that you do the same." He asked holding on to Twilight.

"I promise, but there's just one problem." Twilight said short of breath.

"What, what is it?" Night Shadow asked fearfully.

"You're… suffocating… me." Twilight struggled to say.

* * *

After helping out with Applejack and playing games with Rainbow Dash during the previous days, Night Shadow found it only fair to help out the rest of Twilight's friends. Today was Rarity's turn, except she wasn't the only one waiting.

"Rainbow Dash, I told you to stay still!" Rarity said trying to pull her down with the loose ribbons.

"I can't help it, being grounded is so boring." Rainbow said plopping back down to the floor.

"Well if you stood still for a minute, your dress would have been done by now." Rarity said tying the ribbon to the dress. "Now I will be right back with rubies." She said walking into a room.

Shortly after, Night Shadow walked through the door to see Rainbow with the biggest "Kill me now" face he had ever seen.

"You mad, Dashie?" He teased.

"Oh shut up, you're only here mock me like the rest, but your turn will come soon enough." Rainbow said irritated.

"Well, with all jokes aside, you actually look beautiful in that dress." Night Shadow complimented.

"That won't make me feel any better about this, but I know what will." Rainbow said with an evil smile.

"You don't mean…" Night Shadow said fearfully.

"Yeah I do, it's time to fulfill your end of the bargain, Night Shadow." Rainbow said approaching him.

"If this will make you happy… then I guess so." Night shadow said taking in a deep breath. "She-"

"Rainbow Dash, this is terrible!" Rarity said barging in on the conversation.

"What is it, zombies, vampires, wereponies, or worse… the old guy from down the street?!" Night Shadow asked panicking.

"No, this is the worst, possible, thing!" Rarity yelled, emphasizing.

"What could be worse than the old guy down the street?" Night Shadow said in disbelief.

"I… ran out of rubies!" Rarity bluntly said.

Night Shadow went from panic to dead-pan face.

"You're freaking out because you ran out of… RUBIES!" He practically shouted.

"Yes, now I can't finish Rainbow's dress." Rarity said looking around frantically.

"Oh… well we can't have that can we." He said looking back at Rainbow sinisterly.

"No darling we can't, so I'm going to go find some, if you want to help that is." Rarity said putting on a fancy purple scarf and walking outside.

"Of course, I have nothing better to do." Night Shadow said picking up his trench coat and trotting to the door.

"Hey! What about your promise!" Rainbow yelled.

"Sorry, but it seems I'm busy at the moment… please leave a message after the-"

Night Shadow, quickly slamming the door behind him, left Rainbow in the room.

* * *

Ten minutes passed before Rarity and Night Shadow reached the excavation site.

"Are we there yet?" Night Shadow complained.

"No Night Shadow, you have asked thirty-four times already." Rarity sighed.

"Are we there yet?" Night Shadow asked again.

"Yes, we're finally here." Rarity said relieved

"Oh… I didn't care anyways." Night Shadow said teleporting in front of her.

Rarity rolls her eyes.

"Anyways, your job is to dig up the diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and any other stone of value that I highlight with my magic." Rarity said already searching.

"You know… I can do that to… just sayin'." He said.

"It's not lady like to get your hooves dirty, so please Night Shadow." Rarity said with puppy eyes.

"Fine… you win." He said walking along faintly. "But why couldn't Spike come along as well, from what I've heard he loves helping you." He asked curiously.

"Spike was going to help, but he isn't feeling well… the poor thing, he really wanted to help." Rarity said feeling remorse.

"It must have been from yesterday, being out in the cold all day. That can happen to anypony or any dragon in his case, but I have a way to fix that after we are finished here." Night Shadow said walking alongside her.

"How do you suppose that, darling? You don't look like the doctor type." Rarity asked still searching for jewels.

"Not to brag, but look at my cutie mark, it stands for my talents with alchemy. This means that I know my fair share of info on healing potions." Night shadow said proudly.

"You're an alchemist, but that talent hasn't been seen for thousands of years, how could you possibly know?" She asked dumbfounded.

"Uhhhh, I like to practice ancient arts." Night Shadow said stepping over a large stone.

"And it's the middle of winter, where could you possible find the plants you need?" Rarity asked.

"I'm an expert for a reason; I just need to inspect what plants ponyville has and make exceptions. It shouldn't be hard to make a basic potion with that." Night Shadow said confidently.

"Just don't try anything dangerous now like explosions, or I will have to fix your hair again." Rarity said smiling.

"Yeah, I wouldn't want that again." Night Shadow whispered to himself. "Have we found anything yet?"

"Nothing but rocks and snow, Night Shadow." Rarity said disappointed. "Wait, there's something under that tree."

Night Shadow went to inspect the location.

"I don't mean to disappoint you, but there's nothing here." Night Shadow said digging up dirt.

"No-no, there in that tree… literally." Rarity said back to him.

Night Shadow looked back at her doubtfully, and then bucked the tree which happened to be hollow making it fall to the ground revealing all sorts of priceless jewels.

"Oh my gosh, you were right." Night Shadow said shocked.

"Of course I am, now get the jewels before they show up again." Rarity said almost nervous.

"I don't know who they are, but it would explain the jewels in this tree. This means there's more around here!" Night shadow said excited and ran off.

"Wait, I don't think that's a good… idea!" Rarity said, turning around to see three large figures.

One hour later

"Hey Rarity, look at all the things I've found... where did she go?" Night Shadow asked looking around for her.

Ten more minutes passed before Night Shadow started to get worried.

"Rarity, where are you!" He shouted causing an echo with no response.

Ten more minutes pass

"Rarity!" He shouted once again waiting for a reply. "Oh, this isn't working; I shouldn't have left her behind." He said to himself. "Where are you?!"

"You won't see her again until you return what you have stolen from us." An obnoxious voice said behind him.

"And if you don't we're-"

"Yeah yeah, you will beat me up and take my money. Been there, done that, now let's get to the chase where I beat the information out of you." Night shadow said facing the three large figures. "So let me guess; you're the tall, strong thug who happens to be dumb. He's medium sized so he must be the brains behind this, and you're the small, fast guy." He said as he criticized the group. "And together, you make the talking fur ball gang."

"So you're not going to ask us where we took your friend?" The smaller one asked.

"Why should I, you're not going to tell me anyways so why waste my time, but by all means I would like the names of you dogs before you're hospitalized." Night Shadow said assuming a fighting position.

"Fine, since you don't play by the rules of kidnapping, my name's Rover." The medium sized figure said.

"I'm Spot." The smaller one said.

"And I'm uhhh… Fido." He said scratching his head.

"And we're the Diamond Dogs!" All three of them said together.

There was a long awkward pause after they finished their introduction.

"What… Is that supposed to be a David Bowie reference?"

"GET HIM!" Rover shouted to his lackeys.

Spot and Fido quickly charged at the red unicorn who smirked at their approach.

"Too easy." Night Shadow whispered before dashing under Fido and jumping over Spot to land in front of a surprised Rover.

"And you're not going to do anything I take it?" Night Shadow mocked.

"Why you little-"

"Pony… it's always been pony." He said, cutting him off by tripping Rover to the ground.

As Rover fell on his face, Fido came back to grab Night Shadow, but instead was tripped by him and fell on Rover. Spot, taking no time at all, jumped at Night Shadow with great speed, and ended up missing due to Night Shadow's dodge causing him to land in the pile.

"You guys are not very coordinated, are you?" Night shadow ridiculed.

"Shut up!" Fido yelled as he got up.

"Oooo, that wasn't very nice." Night Shadow teased as the rest recovered.

Fido charged to grab Night Shadow as he stood there, however Night Shadow leaped out of the way, causing him to crash into a rock. Rover and Spot continued their onslaught attempting to capture the mocking unicorn only to fail every time. Eventually, even Night Shadow was growing tired of evading every attack that came his way. Fortunately, so were the Diamond Dogs.

"This... has… been fun." Night Shadow said panting. "Now where is Rarity?"

"We aren't so easily defeated." Rover said with a sinister smile.

"You're done, what more could you possibly do?!" Night Shadow asked becoming annoyed

"This!" Rover said as Spot whistled into the air.

Suddenly, about twenty diamond dogs emerged from the ground and seized Night Shadow, pinning him to the ground.

"Nothing much to say now little pony?" Spot mocked as he approached with Rover and Fido.

Night Shadow struggled as they stood him up on his hind legs.

"This could have been much easier on you if you had listened to us, now you will spend the rest of your life as a pack mule doing whatever we want." Rover said, holding Night Shadow's face up.

"I will give you one last chance to give me back Rarity… before I get serious." Night Shadow whispered.

The entire group of Diamond dogs laughed at his comment.

"Don't you get it, you have lost little pony… it's over, you work for us now." Fido said to him.

"And soon all your friends will too." Rover said backing up Fido.

Laughing along with everyone else, they started to haul Night shadow to a nearby cave.

"You can torture me and enslave me all you want, but when you involve my friends you have gone too far!" Night Shadow started to yell.

Rover, being in front of the group, stopped the diamond dogs with his paw and walked towards Night Shadow.

"What can you do about it? Your friends are perfect for the job, and you can't do anything about it?" Rover whispered to Night Shadow.

Rover, Fido, Spot and the rest of the group started to laugh maniacally as Night Shadow's anger increased before them.

"You will leave my friends… ALONE!" Night Shadow yelled as his body exploded in a blinding flash of white light, making everyone blast off of him. There he stood, freed from his bonds, in a fit of rage.

Everyone stood in fear at Night Shadow's outburst of power until Rover, almost overcome by fear, gave the command to restrain the rebellious unicorn. All twenty diamond dogs charged from different angles, unfortunately for them, Night Shadow was done playing around. Charging to the two nearest targets, he delivered two strong punches to them that shattered the dog's armor like glass. Whipping around to face the others, he charged his horn and fired two explosive blasts that instantly knocked out seven diamond dogs and created a smoke cloud.

With nine dogs down, Night Shadow still showed no signs of weariness as he teleported into two other dogs, forcing them to crash into the snow and bucked another behind him through a boulder. Using the cloud of smoke to his advantage, he quickly finished off three more in less than seconds, shattering their armor to pieces with just his hooves. When the smoke dissipated, it revealed fifteen unconscious diamond dogs in the snow. The last five were almost cowering in fear as Night Shadow dashed in front of one and upper cut his chin making him back-flip into a tree.

As they tried to run off, Night Shadow appeared in front them and sidekicked one across the face, forcing him into another. One of the last two dogs decided to be bold and grabbed Night shadow's long mane in hopes to stop his rampage. Having his hair grabbed, Night Shadow back-flipped and bucked the dogs face, shattering his helmet. Being free, he tripped the helpless diamond dog into the air and using his hind leg, kicked it into a group of rocks. The last diamond dog could do nothing but run in fear, disobeying his orders.

Blindly running, he did not notice Night Shadow teleport in front of him on his hind legs with his back turned until he back-hoofed him into the air. Not stopping there, Night Shadow close-lined the dog to make him stop mid-flight and slammed his fore-hoof into his stomach. He then stood up and teleported into Rover forcing him to the ground and placed his hoof into his throat.

"WHERE IS SHE?!" Night Shadow screamed as his eyes flashed with red color.

"She's… she's… in, in, th-that cave." Rover said pointing at a nearby cave, horrified.

Night Shadow remained silent as he removed his hoof from his throat, and walked passed Fido and Spot who gave him shocked stares.

"Now, get out of my sight, AND NEVER THREATEN MY FRIENDS AGAIN!" Night Shadow shouted as the trio ran off.

Night Shadow's eyes went back to a dark purple as he entered the dark cave.

One hour later

"I already told you, I forgive you." Rarity said as she trotted out with Night Shadow.

"I know, I know, I'm just not used to anypony forgiving me so easily." Night Shadow said smiling softly.

Rarity started to focus magic into her horn before she was stopped by Night Shadow.

"No-no, allow me, I'm the reason we got in this mess." Night Shadow said as he quickly teleported them back to Rarity's boutique.

"And that's what happened!" Night shadow said as he sipped on some hot chocolate.

"You have some of the weirdest stories, Night Shadow." Twilight said with a warm smile.

"It's much funner than working like everypony else." Night Shadow said sipping his drink.

"Funner? Funner is not a word, Night Shadow." Twilight said as her smile faded.

"Uhh, yeah it is, I've looked it up before." Night Shadow said as his smile increased.

"What, the dictionary for the grammatically incorrect?" Twilight asked slightly annoyed.

"Well Twilight, I actually looked it up on one of those books on the shelf." Night shadow said pointing to a book shelf with about five-hundred books on it.

"You mean here… in this library!" Twilight said starting to twitch.

"Yeah, but I don't remember which book." Night Shadow said chuckling.

"I have to find it!" Twilight yelled, searching through all the books making a mess within seconds.

Night Shadow slowly creeped to his room unnoticed while Twilight was still trying to find the "book."

"Good night Twilight, you're going to need it." Night shadow whispered before closing the door.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Cutie Mark Troublemakers

Three days before the incident…

Night Shadow decided to sleep in, being tired from yesterday's fight. But by the time he even decided to get out of bed, it was seven at night. Opening the door to the library, he found Twilight still looking for the book. With Twilight busy, he grabbed his black bag and easily snuck by her to check up on Spike.

"Feeling any better little guy?" Night Shadow whispered to him.

"I'm not little you know." Spike said coughing loudly in his bed. "Uhh… I feel terrible."

"You sound like it to." Night Shadow said reaching into his black bag.

"Oh great, medicine." Spike said plopping his head back into his pillow.

"What's wrong with medicine?" Night Shadow asked.

"It always looks, smells, and tastes horrible." Spike said sticking his tongue out.

"Well it's either medicine or…" Night Shadow paused taking a huge needle out.

Spike's face went to pale blue to bright white.

"I'm kidding, geeze." Night Shadow said laughing. "So, can you tell me exactly what is wrong with you?"

"Well I feel very cold, with lots of coughing, headache, and throat pain." Spike struggled to say.

Night Shadow nodded his head before enveloping Spike with a purple glow.

"It seems as if you have a fever. Poor thing, but nothing to worry about." Night Shadow said taking out a blue mountain flower, a butterfly wing, and garlic cloves.

"How are flowers going to help me?" Spike asked confused.

"You'd be surprised at what plants can do." Night Shadow said putting the ingredients into a bowl.

Mixing the ingredients together, Spike noticed that Night Shadow was thinking about something other than brewing.

"What's on your mind? You seem worked up." Spike asked sickly.

"That's just the bed hair, Spike." Night Shadow replied still concentrating.

"No really, what's up with you? You're not normally like this." Spike asked attempting to start a conversation.

Night Shadow chuckled at his statement.

"You've only known me for five days, how could you know what I normally act like?" Night Shadow asked rhetorically. "Although… now that I think about it, you're right Spike, I haven't been normal."

"Do you know why?" Spike asked curious.

"It's because of Twilight." Night Shadow said still brewing ingredients.

"Well… what about her?" Spike asked becoming interested.

"She's… well… different from anypony I've met, i-in a good way that is." Night Shadow said stuttering.

"Like how?" Spike asked still coughing.

"She's intelligent, social, funny, organized, loyal, fun to mess around with, attractive-"

"What was that?" Spike asked rubbing his ears after he cut him off.

"V-very active, that's what I said!" Night Shadow shouted blushing bright red, realizing what he just said. "Anyways, your medicine is almost ready."

"Oh… great." Spike said sarcastically.

"Actually Spike, I'm going to try an experiment. You remember what you said about medicine tasting horrible?" Night Shadow asked.

"That's because they always taste horrible, it's like chugging a bottle of liquid hay." Spike said disgusted.

"Wait… that's it!" Night Shadow exclaimed

"What… what is it?" Spike asked confused.

"These medicines are made for ponies!" Night Shadow shouted excited.

"Which means…?" Spike asked, still wondering what he was so joyful about.

"Which means they were not made for dragons!" Night Shadow said with joy.

"I still don't get it." Spike said not following along.

"You'll see." Night Shadow said with a goofy grin.

Night Shadow spent the next five minutes focused on the potion before speaking again.

"So, what is your favorite flavor or food?" Night Shadow asked.

"Well, I would have to say gem stones." Spike said rubbing his hands together.

This caught Night Shadow off guard as he stood there stunned.

"Dragons eat priceless gems?" Night Shadow asked dumbfounded.

"Yeah, you should try them sometime." Spike said jokingly.

"Okay... what do gems taste like?" Night Shadow asked attempting to get useful facts.

"Gems are like eating fruits in my opinion, the color represents the flavor." Spike said sickly.

"Interesting. Well then, I'm going to try a sapphire, ruby mix. Or a cherry and blueberry blend if you're a pony." Night Shadow said happily.

A few more minutes passed

"Okay Spike, drink up." Night Shadow said levitating the bottle to him.

"It looks like sludge." Spike said pushing the bottle away.

"Looks can be deceiving Spike, and besides, you will feel a lot better afterwards." Night Shadow said handing him back the bottle.

Spike was still resilient as he grasped the bottle and looked at it disgusted. Looking away and closing his eyes, he took a sip from the bottle and was surprised that it tasted way better than he imagined. Drinking the entire thing in less than three seconds, he handed the bottle back to Night Shadow and felt a healing sensation envelope him. In a dim green light, Spike was cured instantly.

"H-how did you… how did you do that?" Spike asked shocked.

"No need to thank me, you guys have done so much for me as it is." Night Shadow said walking away. "Oh, and stay in bed today."

"Why should I do that, I feel better than ever!" Spike asked standing up on the bed.

"Because you would have the rest of the day off." Night Shadow said, winking at him before he descended downstairs.

He made it halfway down the stairs before Twilight addressed him.

"Night Shadow, where the hay is that book!?" She shouted popping out from a pile of books.

"What book?" Night Shadow asked heading to the door.

"The book that had… that word in it." Twilight said paranoid.

"There was no book, Twilight." Night Shadow said smirking.

He could have sworn he heard some glass shatter when he said those words. Twilight just smiled and twitched as she approached him with her messed up mane.

"There… was… no… book!?" She said twitching at every word still grinning.

"Are you okay?" Night Shadow asked a bit freaked out.

"I spent twenty-one hours looking for…NOTHING!?" She screeched.

Night Shadow took this queue to run out the door before he heard a huge explosion behind him screaming his name.

* * *

"I-I'm so glad you could help me out with this, Angel is always picky about his food around winter." Fluttershy said timidly.

"It's no problem at all, just trying to help." Night Shadow said calmly.

"I will be back soon okay? Try not to stress out too much." Fluttershy said before trotting off.

"Don't stay out too long and remember what I said about assertiveness." Night Shadow said before closing the door. "So what are your names, girls?"

Before Night Shadow, were three innocent looking fillies with halos over their heads sitting in front of him. He recalled them saying some kind of cheer before they came into Fluttershy's cottage to spend the night. Something to do with cutie marks was the only thing he caught out of it.

"Who are you again?" The white filly asked, cocking her head.

"Don't you remember stupid? He's the guy that lost to Rainbow Dash!" The orange Pegasus said.

"Hey I tied her and she cheated!" Night Shadow almost shouted.

"Rainbow Dash doesn't cheat, she's the best ever!" The orange Pegasus shouted defending her idol.

"Hey ya'll, he just wanted to know our names, that's all." The yellow filly said in a country accent. "My name's Applebloom."

"Scootaloo." The orange Pegasus said bluntly.

"I'm Sweetie Belle!" She shouted making Night Shadow rub his ears.

"And I am Night Shadow." He said proudly.

"That's such a cool name!" Sweetie Belle said awed.

"It's not as cool as Rainbow Dash." Scootaloo said under her breath, crossing her hooves.

"That's exactly what she said to me too, until we became friends and stuff." Night Shadow said avoiding eye contact. "So what do you girls want to do?"

"We usually go crusading around outside, but it's dark out." Applebloom said, almost in a disappointed tone.

"There are still crusaders in this time zone?" Night Shadow asked surprised.

"Well… no, I don't think so. It's just what we call our group." Applebloom said innocently.

"Are you templars by any chance?" Night Shadow asked, taking out a strange gauntlet.

"No not at all, we are the cutie mark crusaders. We are trying to gain our cutie marks." Scootaloo said backing up Applebloom.

"Oh, then I don't need this then." Night Shadow said throwing the gauntlet through a window, resulting in somepony screaming in agony outside.

"So I was thinkin' we'd try snow shovelin' as our cutie marks." Applebloom suggested.

"That sounds so stupid and boring!" Scootaloo blurted out.

"Well what do you want to do then?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"Something Rainbow Dash would think is cool." Scootaloo said pondering.

"Is that all you think about Scootaloo?" Applebloom asked, a bit ticked.

"No it isn't, and all you think about is dumb ideas that never work!" She countered.

"I do not!" Applebloom shouted

"Yes you do!" Scootaloo yelled

"I DO NOT!" Applebloom practically screamed.

"YES YOU DO!" Scootaloo yelled, getting in Applebloom's face.

"Hey, if you two are going to yell at each other, you're going to need drinks. Do you girls want anything?" Night Shadow asked, attempting to stop the fight.

"That's it, Cutie Mark Crusader drink mixers!" Applebloom shouted.

"YEAH!" The all shouted in unison charging past Night Shadow to the kitchen.

"Aren't you a BIT too young to be mixing… drinks?" Night Shadow asked tapping his hooves together.

"We're just going to make hot chocolate, nothing much." Sweetie Belle said taking milk out of the fridge.

"Oh… those kinds of drinks! Well then make me one, I will be waiting on this couch." Night Shadow said sitting down.

Sitting there for five minutes, he dozed off to the sound of peace. Only to be woken abruptly to a crash in the kitchen.

"What are you three doing in there!?" He called, walking into the kitchen only to see a pillar of fire on the stove.

"Making hot chocolate, duh." Scootaloo replied as Night Shadow turned off the stove.

"You took the term "HOT" too far! You could have hurt yourselves!" Night Shadow yelled protectively.

"Why does everypony assume we're going to hurt ourselves?" Scootaloo asked annoyed.

Night Shadow simply pointed to the stove.

"You burned the milk… EXPLAIN HOW YOU EVEN DO THAT!" Night Shadow said aggravated.

"B-but it's not our fault." Applebloom said redirecting the blame.

"YOU EVEN MELTED THE POT!" Night Shadow yelled out in disbelief.

"I don't even know how that happened." Scootaloo said looking towards the ceiling.

"Do you have anything to say for yourselves?" Night Shadow asked staring at them angrily.

The three fillies looked at him sadly as they ducked their heads in shame, making Night Shadow feel bad for them. After all, they are just little kids that don't know any better. But to make it worse, they looked at Night Shadow with puppy dog eyes with their ears plopped down.

"D-don't do that to me!" Night Shadow pleaded.

The fillies only stared at him longer and then they started making their eyes teary.

"Okay, okay just stop it please… you will make me cry. You're not in trouble anymore." Night Shadow said starting to beg.

"Yay, we're not in trouble anymore!" The fillies all yelled in unison, happily rushing out of the kitchen.

"I will only say this once, but you girls need to stay out of the kitchen and never come back!" Night Shadow shouted in a serious tone.

Sweetie Belle looked at Night Shadow worried before cheering up.

"I have an idea for our cutie marks!" Sweetie Belle said excited.

"Does it involve more burning?" Night Shadow asked in a blunt tone.

"Cutie Mark Crusaders, mane designers!" Sweetie Belle yelled.

"And where are you going to find a poor victim for that, huh?" Night Shadow asked sarcastically until the fillies looked at him, smiling sinisterly. "Oh no… no, no, no, NO, NO!"

* * *

"Why do you three insist on torturing me?" Night Shadow asked beginning to whine.

"You're almost as bad as my sister." Sweetie Belle said jokingly.

"B-but you braided my mane like a mare." Night Shadow whimpered.

"That's because you look like a mare." Scootaloo said laughing.

"And you look like a tom-colt." Night Shadow said before Applebloom pulled on his hair. "Oww! What was that for!"

"Stop bein' mean!" Applebloom said behind him.

"I'm not being mean, she's just being a jerk." Night Shadow said gesturing to Scootaloo.

"I like his mane." Sweetie Belle said softly while brushing Night Shadow's hair.

"Well, I'm right though, his hair is so long that all three of us could fit in it." Scootaloo said exaggerating, although in reality, they all COULD fit in his hair.

"Why don't we dye it a different color?" Applebloom suggested.

"You already tried all the colors in the light spectrum; my hair is PINK for goodness sake!" Night Shadow shouted shamefully.

"Well here, put this blindfold on." Scootaloo said, handing him a black handkerchief.

"This again… fine!" Night Shadow said irritated, putting on the blindfold.

"What do we do now?" Applebloom asked in a whispering tone.

"Just you wait." Scootaloo said leaving the room.

Several moments later, she came back holding a shed tool.

"Is that what I think it is?"Applebloom whispered.

"Shhh… just watch." Scootaloo said chuckling until Night Shadow removed the blindfold.

"What are you three, AAAHHH!" Night Shadow screamed at the sight of Scootaloo holding a hedge trimmer.

"Hey, put the blindfold back on!" Scootaloo shouted.

"Get that contraption away from me!" Night Shadow yelled in horror.

"What's wrong, why are you yelling?" Sweetie Belle asked confused.

"She's trying to cut my mane!" Night shadow yelled pointing to Scootaloo.

"It will look better trimmed." She said approaching.

"WITH A BUCKIN' HEDGE TRIMMER!" Night Shadow screamed reversing his own gravity.

"Come back down here and get your haircut!" Scootaloo yelled frustrated.

"No! I don't want to!" Night Shadow yelled childishly.

The next fifteen minutes consisted of Night Shadow dodging a broom from Scootaloo.

"Stop being a child!" Scootaloo yelled swinging the broom.

"You're the one who broke the chandelier!" Night Shadow said dodging the broom.

"You're just a chicken." Scootaloo said making excuses.

"Excuse me… you're the chicken, not just a chicken, THE chicken." Night Shadow emphasized.

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle laughed at his comment making Scootaloo angry enough to throw the broom right at Night Shadow, knocking him to the floor. He could have sworn he heard some mare yelling "K.O!" in the background.

"You won't make fun of me after this!" Scootaloo yelled, charging at him with the hedge trimmer.

Night Shadow quickly got up and converted the object into red velvet ice-cream with a golden bowl. Taking the bowl in his hooves, he ate the bowl and chucked the ice-cream out the window resulting in a burst of light and fire.

"Here's an idea for a cutie mark, Cutie Mark Crusader janitors, NOW GO CLEAN IT UP!" Night Shadow yelled, ticked off.

All three fillies left the room in a single file, too frightened to even look up. After five minutes, Night Shadow, feeling bad for what he did, went outside.

"Hey look… I'm really sorry I yelled at you three, but you're going to get a cold if you stay out in the snow for too long..." Night Shadow paused looking for them. "Uhhh, where are you girls? This isn't funny!" He yelled.

"Night Shadow how were the kids, and why is your mane pink?" Fluttershy asked coming up a pathway.

"Well, you see, about that…" Night Shadow stuttered.

Ten minutes later

"Why would you do that, Night Shadow?" Fluttershy asked running along with him.

"They tried to cut my hair." Night Shadow tried to reason with her.

Following the trail of hoof prints, they ended up at the opening of the Everfree Forest. Night Shadow continued along for five seconds until turning around to see Fluttershy still at the entrance.

"I know the forest is scary at night for you, but we have no choice. By the way the trees are swaying, I say there's a blizzard coming, a BIG one. Those girls don't have a chance surviving alone unless we find them now!" Night Shadow said concerned.

"I-I-it's just so d-dark and there's so many animals that can h-hurt us." Fluttershy said shaking.

"Then stay close to me and I will keep you safe, I promise." Night Shadow said conjuring an illumination of light from his horn. "The trail leads on this way." He said, signaling Fluttershy to proceed.

Continuing along the path of hoof prints in the seemingly endless forest, Night Shadow and Fluttershy had hoped they would come across the three fillies. Unfortunately though, Night Shadow was correct about the fast approaching blizzard. With their only lead to finding the fillies covered up by snow, all seemed lost, and time was running out for both them…and the girls.

Two hours later

"APPLEBLOOM, SWEETIE BELLE, SCOOTALOO, WHERE ARE YOU?!" Night Shadow attempted to shout over the raging wind. "It's… its hopeless now."

"We've come so far, we can't give up now." Fluttershy reassured him.

"Fluttershy, this wasn't your doing, it was mine. Go back the way we came from and-"

"No, I'm not leaving you here!" Fluttershy said in a serious tone, cutting him off.

"Please listen to me! You and I both know that you can't withstand the harsh conditions of a blizzard. Let's cut our loses, "You won't survive out here alone!" Fluttershy said taking a stand after she cut him off again..

There was a long pause of silence between the two ponies before Night Shadow spoke.

"Neither will you." He said softly turning away from Fluttershy. "Now go, and don't look back."

Fluttershy, still being resilient, eventually had to agree with his statement and turned the other way.

"Please come back Night Shadow, we care about you." Fluttershy whispered to herself.

Suddenly, over the rage of the storm, a large black form leaped over Night Shadow, landing right in front of Fluttershy. Creating a crash that knocked her to the ground, the figure roared into the victim's face without remorse.

"FLUTTERSHY, STAY DOWN! Night Shadow shouted, about to fire a magical beam.

"No wait!" Fluttershy pleaded standing to her hooves. "Are you lost little guy? Oh you poor thing, let me help you find your family again." Fluttershy said softly approaching the wild animal.

Night Shadow was in a mix of amazement and confusion as he lowered his guard a little. However, when he stared into the manticore's eyes, he saw that the whites of the beast's eyes were replaced with bright green with red pupils giving off a black aura. The beast, having Fluttershy distracted, raised his paw to deliver a deadly strike.

"That manticore is under the influence of dark magic! GET AWAY FROM IT, FLUTTERSHY!" Night Shadow shouted jumping in the way of the attack.

Taking the entire blow, Night Shadow was thrown into Fluttershy by the great force of the animal. They came to an abrupt stop after Night Shadow, unwillingly, sandwiched Fluttershy against a tree. When the two struggled to stand, Fluttershy collapsed back down in the snow screaming in pain. Night Shadow stood in a mix of horror and anger when he saw Fluttershy's wing completely bent backwards and her chest cavity swollen from her rib cage being broken. He abruptly turned to look at the manticore with an angry look.

"I promised her that she would come to no harm, that she would be safe from creatures like you. I promised this because I was confident she would be protected from the likes of you! But I never thought that a beast would have the mordacity to use me to hurt his victims! YOU MADE ME HURT HER!" Night Shadow screamed causing echoes to boom around the forest.

The manticore stood up on its hind legs and then crashed back down roaring into Night Shadow's face sending riffles through his fur coat and hair.

"Your intimidation strategies only reveal your weakness to the world! NOW PAY FOR YOUR ACTIONS!" Night Shadow yelled as his horn illuminated with a bright purple light.

The manticore charged at the enraged unicorn to finish what he started. Night shadow, taking the initiative, leaped over the charging beast, grabbed its tail, and flung it through a tree.

"Fluttershy, don't make sudden movements, I will be back to help." Night Shadow said comforting her.

"D-don't hurt the poor thing, he's just confused, please help him." Fluttershy struggled to say.

Night Shadow was taken aback by her kindness towards the animal that just hurt her.

"The manticore is under the influence of dark magic, but I will remove it from him." Night Shadow said confidently as he chased after the beast.

Five minutes later

"Is that all you got!" Night Shadow shouted from behind multiple bushes.

A loud roar boomed once again through the forest before the manticore flew into a clearing in the trees. When the corrupted beast stood back up, Night Shadow emerged from the thick shrubs unfazed and calm.

"You disgust me, cruel beast. The only thing keeping me from destroying you where you stand is because of the mercy Fluttershy is giving you. The one you hurt in your blind rage and ignorance!" Night Shadow yelled.

The manticore once again charged at Night Shadow to overpower him with strength. Instead of this happening, Night Shadow appeared above the creature's head and pinned it to the ground. Once grounded into the snow, Night Shadow stood on its head and raised his hooves into the air. Powering magic though his hooves, he slammed them into the manticores head, casting out the dark magic within the animal.

"You have been freed from your curse, now live your life in peace. For I will call upon you again soon." Night Shadow declared to the manticore before it acknowledged him and walked off.

"Now to find Fluttershy and fix the damage that has been done." Night Shadow said to himself before running back to Fluttershy.

* * *

Not long afterwards he found Fluttershy still crying in pain as she lied under a tree. Night Shadow was experienced with alchemy and healing, but he never dealt with something like this.

"Can you tell me exactly where your pain is?" Night Shadow said nervously.

"I-I… it h-hurts so much, my chest I think-" Fluttershy said in pain before cutting herself off by screaming in agony when she attempted to stand up.

"Don't try to move Fluttershy, it will only make it worse." Night Shadow said almost abruptly.

"I-it's not worth it, Night Shadow, just…just leave me-

"NO! I'm not leaving you here!" Night Shadow tried to say over the raging winds.

"Isn't it funny, I said the same thing to you." Fluttershy whispered before coughing up blood and shutting her eyes.

Night Shadow couldn't bear to see her in pain anymore, but he had no choice. He couldn't possibly get the needed items to save her in time.

"PLEASE STAY WITH ME, FLUTTERSHY, DON'T GIVE IN TO YOUR PAIN!" Night Shadow said in tears holding Fluttershy's head up and realizing she stopped breathing. "I-I don't know what to do… I can't do anything to help." Night Shadow said to himself, letting some tears fall. "I failed you Fluttershy, I have failed every friend I have ever had... I'm sorry."

Night Shadow said his final words softly before closing his eyes as he held Fluttershy in his hooves. Suddenly, as all hope seemed lost, Night Shadow's eyes shined bright blue and enveloped Fluttershy in a bright aura of magic. Placing a hoof on her and saying the words, "Dry your tears, for your pain is no more", Fluttershy was cured instantly and breathed the breath of life again. The first thing she saw when she opened her eyes were Night Shadow's as he gave her a warm smile.

"Go get help, Fluttershy, I will find the fillies." Night Shadow said softly.

Fluttershy obeyed him, but noticed that Night Shadow was different. As if a calm wave of confidence and humility had come over him to make him like this. Making him seem totally changed, but still in the same body of Night Shadow only with a gentler and caring heart. To top it all off, Night Shadow had a bright glow, making everything near him have a sense of hope and happiness. With that, Fluttershy went to get help as fast as she could.

"The dark magic in this forest had prevented me from finding the fillies before, let's see if…" Night Shadow trailed off trying to sense out the girls. "There they are!" He said joyfully before teleporting in a bright blue flash of light.

* * *

As soon as Night Shadow reappeared, his bright blue eyes regressed back to dark purple

"Woo, what happened!?" Night Shadow asked himself.

"Night Shadow, is that you?" Applebloom called from the distance.

"Yeah, where are you girls!?" Night Shadow shouted, turning around to see the three of them huddled together to keep warm under a rock formation. He also noticed icicles forming under their noses, as well as their pale blue coats. "Where have you three been!?" He asked in a stern but worried voice.

"We were trying to get our cutie marks." Scootaloo said shivering.

"By freezing your flanks off?" Night Shadow yelled calmly.

"No, Cutie Mark Crusaders lumberjacks." Applebloom said to Night Shadow.

"Then it turned into Cutie Mark Crusaders rescue crew." Scootaloo said cutting in.

"Except we're being rescued instead of rescuing." Sweetie Belle said disappointed.

"Well you're the craziest fillies I have ever seen, and that's saying something. Come on, let's get you girls home." Night Shadow said softly.

As if fate could be crueler, a large tree next to Night Shadow collapsed onto his hind legs. The fillies stood there, horrified by what happened.

"Tell me… did a very large tree happen to land on my legs?" Night Shadow asked quietly.

"Yes!" The girls yelled in unison.

"That's what I thought…AAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Night Shadow screamed as he used what little magic he had left to remove the tree from his legs.

"Are… are you ok?" Sweetie Belle asked innocently.

"Well let's see, a ten ton tree just landed on my legs, and I screamed so loud it would make a super saiyan jealous. Do you think I'm fine?!" Night Shadow said rhetorically.

"Do… do you need help?" Sweetie Belle asked again.

"Noooo, not at all, let me just walk over there with my BROKEN LEGS!" Night Shadow yelled sarcastically.

"So, is that a yes or a no?" Sweetie Belle asked confused.

Night Shadow face planted into the snow.

"Yes!" He said muffled.

The three fillies then dragged Night Shadow's limp body into their little "slice of heaven" in the wrathful blizzard.

"What are you goin' to do now, Night Shadow?" Applebloom asked concerned.

"What are we going to do?" Scootaloo asked fearfully.

"What can we do?" Sweetie Belle asked looking outside, hopelessly.

There was a long pause as the blizzard continued to release it's fury upon the group.

"We're just going to have to wait it out." Night Shadow said doubtfully.

"Are you crazy?" Sweetie Belle practically yelled.

"Nope… just insane." Night Shadow said as he casted a magical barrier to seal off the entrance. "That was all the magic I had left… but it should keep the snow out." Night Shadow said before passing out.

"Great, we're all going to freeze!" Scootaloo said shivering.

"Cutie Mark Crusader icicles." Applebloom said sobbing as the other two fillies hugged her for warmth.

Night Shadow laid there as he heard the cries of the fillies. Feeling even worse for them than before. He couldn't help but remember that he was the reason they were in this predicament.

"Girls, I'm sorry for yelling at you three before. I acted out of rage." Night Shadow said dimly. "Do you forgive me?"

"Of course we forgive you, but we were the ones that made you angry, do you forgive us?" Sweetie Belle asked sorrowfully as the other two nodded their heads.

"Of course I do… but this entire scene just sounds cheesy and predictable." Night Shadow said chuckling. "And you know my hair that you're so fond of Scootaloo?"

"Yeah what about it." She asked puzzle.

"It's not just for looks you know; it also supplies heat for me… and others." Night Shadow said softly.

"Are you saying we should use it for heat?" Scootaloo said surprised.

"That's exactly what I want you three to use it for, as weird as it may sound." Night Shadow said pondering. "However, the most important thing is it will keep-"

"I CALL FIRST!" Sweetie Belle yelled as she dived head first into Night Shadow's hair. "Hey, it's not that bad in here." She said poking her head out.

"It does look cozy in there." Applebloom said, walking towards Sweetie Belle before disappearing into the mane.

"Are you kidding, this is so weird." Scootaloo said, standing alone.

"Suit yourself, if you like the cold that is." Night Shadow said dozing off to sleep.

Scootaloo sat alone for ten seconds before she realized how cold it really was in the rock formation.

"Okay, okay, you win." Scootaloo said dashing into the hair.

Soon, the fillies were fast asleep in Night Shadow's mane. However, even though the fillies were safe for now, Night Shadow could not take his mind off of Twilight. He tried to think about how he and the girls would be rescued, or how they would get out of this, and even how he was sorry for the prank he pulled on her. However, the thoughts came back to the same subject he didn't want to admit for so long. Night Shadow, the pony who defends his friends from danger and harm, had fallen in love with Twilight Sparkle.

**_(Now before we have a rage fit... i said there would be pairing between characters, so there should be no excuse. Other than that, the pairing isn't big, its more like an innocent kind of love. please give it a chance and thank you for your support.)_**


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: The Pink Prankster

Two days before the incident…

"So it comes down to this… the great Night Shadow, in love with Twilight?!" The darker version of Night Shadow yelled in disbelief.

"I've made up my mind, and I'm sticking with it… you've always hated everything I do anyway." Night Shadow stated.

"Because it gets you banished and practically destroyed, you fool!" Dark Night Shadow exclaimed.

"She's different from the others!" Night Shadow said backing himself up.

"She works with your enemies, this makes her worse than the others!" Dark Night Shadow pointed out.

"And what have you done? All you do is bash him for every mistake he does, his-"

"Don't even talk to me, don't think for a second that I don't know what you did to the yellow pegasus." Dark Night Shadow scorned cutting off the lighter version of Night Shadow.

"Night Shadow didn't know what to do, and you certainly wouldn't help her." Light Night Shadow said with reason.

"She's a friend of your enemy, OUR enemy. Must I remind you why we are in this predicament in the first place!" Dark Night Shadow said angrily.

"We are here because of YOUR advice!" Night Shadow yelled into his darker copy's face.

"NO!" Dark Night Shadow yelled, punching his neutral self into the ground. "WE'RE HERE BECAUSE YOU CAN'T LEARN FROM YOUR MISTAKES!"

"You're one to judge." Night Shadow said wiping his muzzle.

The darker version of Night Shadow then became enraged, casting flames all around his neutral self.

"I WILL MAKE YOU SUFFER LIKE THE WORTHLESS DOG YOU ARE!" Dark Night Shadow yelled with fire spouting from his hair, and then lowered his voice. "Regret will come upon you when you realize your assumption about that slave was wrong. And when that happens, don't expect any mercy from me… NOW BEGONE!"

* * *

Opening his eyes, Night Shadow was greeted by familiar faces, though the scenery was not as he remembered. Being on what appeared to be a mattress, he recalled the cold and hopeless situation he was in not too long ago. Except now he was in a hospital with the faces of six colorful friends that cared for him, though he didn't recognize the white stallion with a medical hat.

"Is he going to be okay doctor?" Twilight whispered concerned.

"Of course he's going to be okay. After all, he did go hoof-to-hoof with me." Rainbow said with confidence.

"To be honest, I've never seen a case like his before. His recovery and metabolism are off the charts, and his legs healed overnight. I'd say he is one lucky pony to even be breathing right now." The doctor said confounded.

"I'm right here you know!" Night Shadow said bluntly.

"Night Shadow, your awake!" Twilight shouted joyfully as she ran over to hug Night Shadow's head. He would have hugged back if he wasn't strapped down to the mattress. "Your safe now, we found you with the girls and-"

"The fillies! I have to find-"

Night Shadow attempted to sit up, but failed to notice the neck brace before almost choking on it.

"Sorry about that, you were thrashing around in your sleep; let me take those braces off." The doctor said removing the neck brace.

"Thank you. But still, I need to find them." Night Shadow said, practically throwing himself off of the bed.

"Relax, they're safe, because of your selflessness." Twilight added.

"Where are they then?" Night Shadow asked freaking out.

"They went back home, but not before checking up on you, they were worried sick." Twilight responded.

"We were all worried for you." Fluttershy said timidly.

"Rarity and I also owe you our thanks." Applejack said removing her hat. "I don't know what I would've done without my little sis."

"Or mine. I mean who else would clean the house, fold the cloths, and…"

Rarity looked around to see everypony looking at her confused and shocked.

"What I want to say is that I'm glad you saved Sweetiebelle." Rarity said showing gratitude.

"Group hug, everypony!" Pinkie yelled happily to everyone as they hugged Night Shadow, and she meant everypony. Even the doctor was pulled into it by Pinkie.

"Anyways!" The doctor said, forcing himself out of the hug. "Night Shadow here should be ready to leave in about two hours."

The group of friends cheered with delight at the news, even the doctor couldn't help but smile at how close these ponies were to each other.

Two hours later

"Goodbye everypony. Thanks for visiting me." Night Shadow said as Fluttershy, Rainbow, Applejack and Rarity left to do their own thing. Only Pinkie and Twilight were left. "Twilight, are you… doing anything today?" He asked nervous.

"It says on my schedule that I'm late for the Winter Moon Celebration, its due tomorrow! I don't have the time to do anything today, sorry." Twilight said worried.

"You've had time before now, why didn't you do anything?" Night Shadow wondered.

"Because you keep distracting me with your shenanigans and situations. Don't take it the wrong way, but I just need time alone." Twilight said trotting off.

"Okay then. Bye Twilight, see you tomorrow!" Night shadow said, waving his hoof frantically.

Night Shadow started trotting off towards the road before being stopped by Pinkie's hoof.

"Call me crazier than a mad cow on a sugar rush, but I think you're in love with Twilight!" She said in a sing song voice.

"Really… and how could you possibly know that?" Night Shadow said annoyed.

"I also know that prank you did on her, that was so funny, I had no idea you were into pranks." Pinkie added joyfully.

"But you weren't even-"

"Oh and your birthday is tomorrow!" Pinkie yelled as confetti shot out of nowhere.

"NO ONE KNOWS THAT, HOW ARE YOU DOING THIS!?" Night Shadow shouted backing away in fear.

"That's just my pinkie sense, Nighty." Pinkie said smiling as usual.

"Nighty?" Night Shadow asked confused."

"It's your new nick-name silly. I give everypony one, Dashie is just my favorite." Pinkie said, showing Night Shadow a list of nick-names.

"But what about your sixth sense thing?" Night Shadow asked dumfounded.

"Pinkie sense isn't labeled under that, Nighty. It's on a totally different scale." Pinkie exaggerated.

"That still doesn't make any sense!" Night Shadow yelled, shaking Pinkie back and forth.

"I know it doesn't, but that's how it works." Pinkie said joyfully.

"Ok… what about the whole Twilight thing?" Night Shadow asked still puzzled.

"Well when hooves shake, cheeks blush, and the heart flutters; it means some pony is in love. There was also the fact that I looked at the last line of chapter five." Pinkie bluntly said.

"You did what?" Night Shadow asked, completely lost.

"Oh I forgot you can't break the fourth wall, silly me." Pinkie apologized.

At this point, Night Shadow didn't know if he should be mad at Pinkie, or be glad his mind wasn't officially blown due to the confusion.

"Teach me your ways, Pinkie Pie!" Night Shadow shouted as he plopped to Pinkie's hooves.

"Well I don't know…" Pinkie joked, using her hooves to stroke an imaginary beard.

"I must know your secrets; it's my job to learn fromm the best. Please Pinkie." Night Shadow begged.

"You have the determination… but one does not simply break the fourth wall." Pinkie said imitating a voice no pony had heard before.

Night Shadow simply got up and stared into Pinkie's eyes with confidence.

"Challenge… accepted."

"Good, now the first step is to go prank someponies with me!" Pinkie said excited.

Night Shadow's left eye twitched rapidly before he was launched onto his back, imitating an anime faint.

* * *

"Okay padawan, your first target is none other than Dashie." Pinkie said pointing to a list.

"Any suggestions, master?" Night Shadow said winking.

"Be creative… and use the force, Night Shadow." Pinkie said before jumping into a nearby bush.

"Soon your secrets shall be mine …MINE!" Night Shadow laughed menacingly as random lightning bolts shot behind him.

He continued laughing until one of the bolts hit him directly, snapping him back to reality. Looking up, he found a rogue storm cloud above him, giving him his first prank idea.

* * *

"Who gives orders to buck the clouds on Thursday? Now I have to do it because nopony else will!" Rainbow Dash said annoyed.

Rainbow was assigned cloud duty for the Winter Moon Celebration that would take place tomorrow. However, Twilight still didn't inform anypony about it yet because of her "distractions."

"Stupid last minute assignments, stupid weather team, stupid clouds." Rainbow bickered to herself as she bucked clouds.

"There's… so… many." Rainbow panted as she approached another cloud.

Unexpectedly, this cloud flung itself into Rainbow's face, causing her to crash into a tree.

"I AM SO NOT IN THE MOOD FOR THIS!" She shouted angrily, attempting to buck the cloud again.

The cloud was practically moving at the same speed as Rainbow, constantly dodging her every attempt to buck the cloud.

"Stand still you stupid, flying, white thing!" She yelled, bucking the cloud with all her strength.

Just as she made contact, Rainbow Dash was electrocuted and fell out of the sky. As she was falling, a dark purple aura enveloped her, resulting in her safe descent to the ground and sounds of laughter in the distance. Getting back up, she inspected the sounds to find Night Shadow and Pinkie on their backs, struggling to breath from laughing so hard.

"And then she was like, 'I am so not in the mood for this!'" Night Shadow said, imitating Rainbow's voice.

"Then she chased the cloud everywhere and lit up like a Christmas tree!" Pinkie tried to say before bursting into laughter again.

"YOU TWO ARE SO… oh what's the use, I don't have time for this!" Rainbow said, dropping her anger.

"Time for what exactly?" Night Shadow asked, recovering.

"I'm clearing the sky for some event tomorrow that I don't even know about. They could at least tell me what it is before sending me out here!" Rainbow said, trailing off the subject.

"Well if you go pranking with me and Nighty here, he could clear the sky for you in a jiffy." Pinkie said to Rainbow.

"Nighty… *snicker* ...okay Nighty *snicker*, can you clear-" Rainbow attempted to say before exploding in a fit of laughter.

"That's not funny Rainbow." Night Shadow said, becoming embarrassed.

"Your right, it isn't funny… it's hilarious!" Rainbow said, laughing harder.

Night Shadow, still being ashamed, simply swiped his hoof across the sky, clearing the clouds in the process.

"Are you done laughing yet?" Night Shadow asked irritated.

"Just about done." Rainbow said, wiping away a tear from her eye. "Okay, let's go…hehe, Nighty."

"Yeah, yeah… lets go prank Applejack now." Night Shadow suggested.

"Ooo, I got one for her." Pinkie said excitedly.

"Which is…?" Night Shadow and Rainbow asked in unison.

"Let's get to Sweet Apple Acres first, and then you see." Pinkie reinsured them.

"So are we just walking there or should I-"

Before Night Shadow finish, Pinkie vanished in a pink blur and Rainbow had already flown off.

"Just teleport." Night Shadow said, finishing his sentence before disappearing in a purple flash.

* * *

Night Shadow reappeared in a bush in front of Applejack's home

"Ha, I'm first as always, there's no way they could-"

"HI!" Pinkie shouted as Night Shadow turned around, resulting in him to jump backwards into the snow.

"Holy horse crackers don't do that!" Night Shadow said frightened.

"Oops, sorry." Pinkie apologized, rubbing her mane with a hoof.

Seconds later, Rainbow flew in and skid across the snow, covering both Pinkie and Night Shadow in it.

"Dashie, were you trying to turn me into a snowpony?" Pinkie asked, shaking the snow off.

"No, but consider that payback from earlier." Rainbow smiled triumphant. "Where's Night Shadow though?"

"Here!" Night Shadow said shoving a hoof out of the snow. "And can I get a hoof?"

"Just get out of the snow you lazy pony." Rainbow said back to him.

"Fine, but you asked for it." Night Shadow said, putting his hoof back into the snow.

The pile of snow then glowed dark purple before Night Shadow exploded out of the snow pile, getting Rainbow and Pinkie covered in it.

"What was that for?" Rainbow said, removing the snow from her muzzle.

"You asked for it, what could I say." Night Shadow said, smiling.

"Okay Dashie, I need you to create a gust of wind that will knock Applejack's hat off when she comes out." Pinkie said to Rainbow.

"Got it." Rainbow saluted before launching in the air.

"And Night Shadow?" Pinkie said turning to him.

"What needs to be done?" Night shadow said, flowing magic through his horn.

Pinkie then trotted over and whispered the plan into Night Shadow's ear.

"Easy enough, but what are you going to do?" Night Shadow asked.

"Just watch." Pinkie said cheerfully.

Before Night Shadow even realized it, Pinkie was gone and already at the door to Applejack's home. She then knocked on the door rapidly until Applejack opened the it.

"Well hi there Pinkie, what brings you to Sweet Apple Acres?" Applejack asked, curious.

Pinkie simply stood there with a big grin on her face. Applejack didn't know what to think of it until Pinkie chucked a snow ball into her face.

"SNOWBALL FIGHT!" Pinkie shouted before darting off.

"Hey no fair, you got a head start!" Applejack shouted playfully as she ran out of the house.

Rainbow Dash took this as her queue, thus swooped down right above Applejack to create a small gush of wind that knocked off her hat.

"Gosh, I've forgotten how cold it could be in the winter, better get my hat first." Applejack said to herself.

Walking towards the hat she noticed a faint purple outline around it, but chose to ignore it as she went to grab it. After tugging on it three times, Applejack realized that she could not get it to budge.

"Hmm that's strange, I don't remember my hat weighing more than a wagon." Applejack said to herself.

She then, with all her strength, attempted to pick up her hat but still couldn't get it to move.

"What in tarnation is goin' on here!?" Applejack shouted.

"Hey Applejack, you left the door open." Big Mac said in the doorway.

"Big Mac, can you come out here and pick my hat up?" Applejack replied.

"But you're right next to it." Big Mac replied confused.

"I know it is, but it weighs more than a barn." Applejack said as she kicked her hat.

"Are you losin' your touch little sis?" Big Mac asked, approaching her.

"Can you help me with this or not?" Applejack asked, slightly frustrated.

"Eeyup." Big Mac said, grabbing the hat with his teeth.

Thinking none of it, Big Mac lightly pulled on the hat, but was surprised that her sister was not kidding about the weight. Bracing himself, he strongly gripped the edge of Applejack's hat and yanked.

"Having any luck?" Applejack asked.

"Nope." Big Mac replied before letting go of the hat and plopping into the snow.

"We've got to try harder, you take the left side and I'll take the right." Applejack declared.

Meanwhile Night Shadow, Pinkie, and Rainbow were struggling to keep themselves from laughing at the scene before them. It took Applejack and BigMac five minutes before they realized that even with their combined strength, the hat was not going anywhere.

"What are you youngins doin' out in the cold for?" An old voice said from inside the house.

"Granny Smith, as silly as this may sound, we're tryin' to pick up my hat." Applejack responded, slightly embarrassed.

"Well you're not doin' it right, let me have a crack at it." Granny Smith said, walking out of the door slowly.

"With all due respect ma'am, I don't think..."

Applejack and Big Mac then witnessed Granny Smith lift up the hat with ease as she carried it off inside.

"You see, you just have to give it the old one, two, three." Granny Smith said before entering the house.

Applejack and Big Mac were still in shock and couldn't move a muscle. Seconds passed before they looked at each other in confusion before reentering the house. In the mean time, Rainbow and Pinkie were laughing their flanks off while Night Shadow simply sat there.

"Night Shadow, you genius!" Pinkie said struggling to breath.

"Yeah, wait until they give up, only to take the weight spell off when Granny Smith came and picked it up." Rainbow said, patting Night Shadow's shoulder.

"But… I didn't." Night Shadow said in confusion.

"Didn't do what?" Rainbow asked, joining the confusion.

"Remove the spell, Rainbow… it's still in effect." Night shadow said, pointing to his glowing horn.

"I'm sure it's nothing to worry about. Come on, we have more ponies to prank." Pinkie said, ignoring the situation.

"Hold on, you picked last time, I think I should pick the next victim, I-I mean pony." Night Shadow said rapidly.

"And what gives you the right to pick before me?" Rainbow demanded.

"You joined this group late, and the fact that you're a mare." Night Shadow said casually.

"I'm sorry, I forgot that being a mare meant that I had no privileges!" Rainbow said aggressively.

"Rainbow I'm going to say this now… your way to easy." Night Shadow said, not thinking.

Rainbow blushed strongly at what Night Shadow said.

"Too easy, what's that suppose to mean!" Rainbow shouted, still blushing.

Night Shadow stared at Rainbow for five seconds before he realized what he said.

"TO MESS WITH, DASHIE! TO MESS WITH!" Night Shadow exclaimed as his face flushed bright red.

Two minutes of sentences taken out of context later.

"Hey let's prank Rarity." Pinkie said, breaking up the awkwardness.

"Yeah that sounds good." Rainbow said, hiding behind a tree out of embarrassment.

"It does, but why don't we prank Fluttershy?" Night Shadow said, pointing to the yellow Pegasus from behind another tree.

"No we can't do that." Rainbow said emerging from her hiding place.

"Why not… oh is it because she's easily intimidated?" Night Shadow asked.

"Yeah, and easily scared." Pinkie said to him.

"What's she doing out here anyways? Rainbow asked Night Shadow.

"Seems like she's carrying three baked pies, I wonder what that would be for?" He asked himself before getting pulled into a bush.

"Who cares, let's just go to Rarity's place." Rainbow said before dashing off.

"Okay Pinkie, do you need…transportation?" Night Shadow finished after realizing she had left. "You're not beating me this time Pinkie."

Night Shadow then vanished in a bright flash to head towards Rarity's boutique.

* * *

Night Shadow emerged from a bush in front of the boutique in hopes that he got there before anypony. Looking up and down, left to right, and even under rocks and trees, he concluded that he got there first.

"That's more like it, even if she's Pinkie it's impossible for her to be faster than-"

"Hey Night Shadow what took so long?" Rainbow asked, lying in a lawn chair next to Pinkie.

"Rainbow… not you too. Why does everypony here break logic… that's my job!" Night Shadow shouted abruptly.

"Well I am the fastest in Equestria, and Pinkie here is just… well Pinkie." Rainbow admitted to herself.

"But how does she beat me here when I teleport… it's not possible!" Night Shadow declared, attempting to bring light to the situation.

"Silly Nighty, I can just jump to the next scene in the story." Pinkie said happily.

"I just call it, 'The speed of Pinkie.'" Rainbow exaggerated.

"Whatever, I was always told that making sense was boring anyways." Night Shadow pointed out. "So any ideas for Rarity?"

"Just… one." Rainbow said sinisterly.

* * *

Rarity was sowing and stitching what remained of Rainbow's dress when she ditched it two days ago, until she heard a knock at the door.

"Hmm, I wonder who that could be at this hour?" Rarity thought to herself, approaching the door.

She opened the door to reveal a dark yellow pegasus mare with a green mane and tail that was similar to Rainbow Dash's. The mare had sunglasses on, so Rarity couldn't tell what her eye color was.

"Hello there and welcome to my shop, how can I help you today?" Rarity asked in her usually fancy tone.

"Well… umm, you see I have this friend-"

"Not a problem ma'am, just tell me your name, his or her name and we talk about the rest darling." Rarity said, taking out a quill and paper.

"My name? Ummmm, Sunlight…Sprinkle?" The mare said in a high pitched voice.

"You know, you sound very familiar to a friend of mine." Rarity thought out loud.

"Really? Umm, lots of ponies say that, hehe." The mare said nervous.

"So, what's your friend's name, hmm?" Rarity asked curious.

"Drake!" The mare blurted out.

"Drake? That's an odd name for a pony." Rarity stated.

"That's just it, he's not a pony he's… a dragon." The mare finally said.

Rarity instantly stopped writing and put the quill down.

"I'm sorry, but did you say dragon, as in a fully grown dragon?" Rarity said in shock.

"Yes that kind of dragon, and he needs a suit by tomorrow morning." The mare said bluntly.

"TOMORROW MORNING!" Rarity practically shouted. "But it's already five in the afternoon, I don't have his measurements or anything!

"I tried to get him to show up, but that would be too much of a hassle for him and me." The mare said, containing a giggle.

"You realize that what you're asking is almost impossible to do in one night!" Rarity said, panicking.

"I know it is, but you have to do it or… or-"

The yellow mare burst out laughing as she hit the floor with a loud thump.

"Rainbow Dash, is that you?" Rarity asked, confused.

"Darn it Dashie, you ruined it." Night Shadow said, walking through the door.

"I couldn't help it, her facial reaction was priceless!" Rainbow said, still laughing.

"And what kind of name is Sunlight Sprinkle anyways?" Night Shadow asked, holding in his own laughter.

"I don't know, but it sounded so stupid." Rainbow said, agreeing with him.

Meanwhile, a yellow Pegasus was crying a river.

"HEY, I was apart of this too!" Pinkie yelled, bouncing through the door.

"So all three of you were involved in this shenanigan?" Rarity asked, finally getting it.

"Yeah pretty much, so don't worry about the suit okay?" Night Shadow said, leaving the boutique with the others. "Actually before I go, I would like a suit for myself tomorrow, it's a special occasion."

"Is this another prank?" Rarity asked, sort of frustrated.

"No not at all, in fact Pinkie can back me up on this. Tomorrow is my birthday and I plan to…" Night Shadow gulped loudly, attempting to build up courage. "Ask Twilight out on a date."

"Yes, I knew it!" Rainbow shouted triumphantly.

"What can I say, the Pinkie senses are never wrong." Pinkie said, looking towards you.

"That's marvelous darling." Rarity said with encouragement.

"So that's it then, wish me luck. Come on girls, let's continue to spread chaos." Night Shadow declared before leaving the boutique.

"Why does that sound familiar?" Rainbow whispered to herself.

Moments later

"Okay Fluttershy here's three pounds of ink, but what are you using this for?" Rarity asked curious.

"It's umm, a surprise for somepony. Just remember to be there at the right time." Fluttershy said, putting the containers of ink into her bag and then walking out the door.

* * *

Throughout the rest of the day, the trio of ponies collaborated and pranked practically everypony in ponyville. Going from simple letters to complex tricks, they used every prank in the book. There was only one last pony to prank…

"Now in my opinion, I saved the best one for last." Night Shadow said excited.

"Yeah… best for last, huh?" Rainbow said smirking.

"Oh hush, we're going to prank Twilight with this."

Night Shadow then presented the two mares with a letter with Celestia's symbol engraved into it.

"Ooo, how did you get that?" Pinkie asked, interested.

"I snagged it when Twilight wasn't looking, I was going to use it for… other purposes." Night Shadow said regretfully. "Aside from that, the writing is forged to look like her hoofwriting, it is perfectly believable." He said with confidence. "However, I can't deliver the letter to her personally otherwise she will assume it's fake."

"Then how can we convince her otherwise?" Rainbow questioned.

"Hopefully the stress that Twilight is going through should keep her from asking too many questions." Night Shadow said confidently.

"I don't know Night Shadow… if Twilight is going through a lot of stress then I don't think we should prank her." Pinkie suggested.

"She's Twilight, I'm sure she can take it." Night Shadow declared. "So who is giving this to her?" He said, waving the letter around.

"I can do it! I have to tell her it's your birthday anyways." Pinkie said, taking the letter.

"You do that, after this we can call it a day." Night Shadow said, sitting down behind a bush.

Pinkie then bounced up to Twilight's door, holding the "letter", and knocked on the door. She noticed a "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door before she knocked again.

"I don't have time for you right now, go away please." Twilight said, with a tone of stress.

"This is important Twilight, open up!" Pinkie yelled, bashing her hooves on the door.

"Seriously! I don't have time for anything, especially you Pinkie!" Twilight Shouted, more aggravated.

"It's something really, really, really, really, really, REALLY important!" Pinkie exaggerated.

There was a long period of silence before the door cracked open to reveal only Twilight's face.

"Make it quick." Twilight said rapidly.

"YOU'RE INVITED TO A BIRTHDAY PARTY!" Pinkie shouted with joy as she fired her party cannon, giving her the invitation.

"YOU GOT ME TO OPEN THE DOOR FOR THAT! DO YOU EVEN-"

"Oh and Celestia sent you a letter." Pinkie added.

"What, why?" Twilight said, taking the letter.

"I really don't know, just that's its important." Pinkie said casually.

"'Dear Twilight Sparkle, it has come to my attention that the population of Ponyville has grown over the time that you have lived there. I would like for you to take a census of all the ponies that live in the area by tomorrow. Signed, Princess Celestia' …but doesn't she know I'm scheduling the Winter Moon Celebration?!" Twilight shouted into the paper.

There was no response because Pinkie had already vanished… leaving Twilight all alone.

"Spike! Write this down for me, I'm going to try to reschedule this for another time." Twilight said, slamming the door.

* * *

It was now dark out, as the three prankster ponies gathered in the center of Ponyville's park.

"That was so fun!" Pinkie shouted.

"It was better than I thought it would be. We should do that more often!" Rainbow admitted.

"We should, well goodnight you two. See you tomorrow." Night Shadow said, waving his hoof.

"See you tomorrow!" The two mares said in unison.

As soon as Night Shadow turned around, his face was pelted with a giant pie filled to the brim with ink. Standing there in shock, he heard the laughter of multiple ponies from all directions as the remains of the pie slid down his muzzle. Wiping the ink from his eyes, he also saw that Rainbow and Pinkie were in the same predicament as he was.

"D-did everypony in Ponyville show up to this?" Rainbow said in surprise.

"Yep, everypony we pranked to be exact." Pinkie exclaimed.

"OK, WHO'S THE PONY THAT THREW THAT?!" Night Shadow yelled.

The crowd of ponies then parted to reveal a very timid pegasus.

"Ummm, I hope that wasn't too mean or anything, I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings."

"FLUTTERSHY!?" The three pranksters shouted in shock.

"Out of all the ponies to pull off something like this, you were the least expected! For that… congratulations." Night Shadow declared happily, extending his hoof to shake her own.

Everypony then cheered at the results of the performance. Seeing the opportunity, Pinkie announced Night Shadow's birthday to everypony, declaring that the party would be around 8:00 pm tomorrow… the same time future Night Shadow warned Twilight about.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: The Misunderstanding

Ten hours before the incident…

"Balloons check, party hats check, presents check, cake..." Pinkie then slammed a giant chocolate kiss into a cake that would dwarf a wedding cake. "CHECKAROO!" Pinkie shouted joyfully.

"Pinkie… that thing is buckin' huge!" Night Shadow said as he sat on the floor, looking at the very top of the cake.

"I've always wanted to try this recipe; I give the best to my best friends, Nighty." Pinkie said, sliding down a twenty-five-foot ladder.

"Aww, you're my best friend too." Night Shadow said, hugging Pinkie tightly.

"Well I did want to make this the best birthday party you've ever had." Pinkie said hugging back.

"It will be, considering that I have never celebrated my birthday before." Night Shadow said with a bit of sadness in his tone.

"And that's why I'm going to make it up with this, and then celebrate… how old are you?" Pinkie asked, realizing that she never knew his age.

"Age wise, I'm currently twenty-three. Time wise would put me at about… 5,023 years?" Night Shadow pondered. "But I turn twenty-four today at eight in the afternoon."

Pinkie stared at Night Shadow confused for a bit before reassuming preparations.

"Then that's twenty-three more birthdays to celebrate!" Pinkie said, excited.

"Well one party is good for one day, no need to rush anything." Night Shadow said, attempting to calm her down. "Oh bucking carbuncles, I need to get my suit.

"Okay Night Shadow, be sure to take your time." Pinkie exaggerated as Night Shadow ran out of the room.

* * *

In the streets of Ponyville

"Going to get my suit, which happens to be on the other side of the buckin' town. Well at least it's my first birthday being celebrated, and I might have a chance with Twilight. Wait, why am I running …I can just teleport. Oh yeah, the narrator wants me to run for some filler until some incident occurs. Well buck that, I'm going to teleport anyways in three, two-"

Night Shadow then teleported to the boutique to find that it was empty.

"Oh buttered biscuits she's gone, now where am I going to get a suit, and why am I asking myself these questions? Oh well, as long as I don't answer my own questions I should be fine." Night shadow said, twitching as his eyes became uncoordinated.

"Hey… your eyes are acting like mine." A gray pegasus said next to him.

"Oh sorry, I didn't see you there. I'm still trying to learn everypony's name. What's your name?" Night Shadow asked kindly.

"Some ponies call me Derpy Hooves because of my eyes, but my actual name is Ditzy Doo." She said happily.

"Does the name Derpy bother you though, I mean… it's the name they gave you because of your eye condition." Night Shadow said, attempting to not be offensive.

"Well… it depends on how you say it, I guess." Derpy said, still unsure.

Night Shadow happened to glance to Derpy's left side to find a timid, unicorn filly hiding behind her tail.

"Hey Derpy, there's a little filly behind you." Night Shadow said, pointing to the filly.

"Yeah that's my daughter, Dinky Doo, she's a bit shy though. Say hi Dinky." Derpy said, in a motherly tone.

"Ummm… hello." Dinky said shyly.

Attempting not to frighten her, Night Shadow leveled his eyes with hers.

"I'm not going to hurt you, there's no need to be afraid of me. Your mom is right there if something happens." Night Shadow said, calming her down.

"Okay..." Dinky whispered before approaching him.

"Well aren't you the most adorable thing I have ever seen!" Night Shadow said, patting Dinky on the head. "So who's the lucky stallion?"

As if the question changed the atmosphere and mood of the situation, Derpy instantly went into a depressed state.

"I'm so sorry if I brought up something, I can just lea-"

"No no… it's just I haven't seen him for so long." Derpy said, attempting to brighten up the mood.

There was a long pause of silence.

"Did he just leave or… pass away?" Night Shadow asked, breaking the silence.

"Neither of those… he was imprisoned five years ago by princess Celestia." Derpy said, avoiding eye contact.

"Ouch, knowing her punishments they can never be good. I bet they never told you why he was punished did they?" Night Shadow said, trying to make a point.

"They told me that he was going away for a long time, tried to tell me to find a new stallion to be with…" Derpy tried to say as tears formed in her eyes. "Told me he was evil and corrupted with hatred. That he could never love anypony, especially me ever again."

As she let some tears fall, Dinky ran back to her mom to comfort her.

"You know it's not true… don't you Ditzy?" Night Shadow said silently.

"None of it! Please believe me he's not evil, he's misunderstood, he's been through so much in his life that makes him believe that he is evil and could never be loved. He's not what everypony thinks he is; he has a heart that beats like everpony else, he feels pain and sorrow just like we do. He's everything to me, I love him for who he really is and not what everypony assumes. I miss him so much." Derpy said, letting the last of her tears fall.

Night Shadow was in a mix of sadness for this poor Pegasus and anger that ponies, including Celestia, would instantly think the worst of somepony that obviously needed help from others. Night Shadow then comforted Derpy with a hug.

"Soon everything will be made right, I promise this one way or another." Night Shadow said, releasing Derpy from the hug.

As if on cue, Night Shadow's suppressors started to beep rapidly as they flashed red.

"I-I have to go!" He shouted fearfully before running off.

* * *

Twilight's tree house.

"How could I be so naïve to think that these would hold for the next week?" Night Shadow said ridiculing himself.

He approached Twilight's door, however, instead of just a sign, the door was now magically enchanted to not let anything through.

'I don't have time for this, I need to get my bag and fix this.' He thought as he teleported to the balcony.

Unfortunately, the balcony door was magically sealed as well.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Night Shadow shouted.

With only one option left, he jumped down to the back of the tree house.

"It's now or never!" He yelled, letting his horn flow with magic.

"Twilight please, can we take a break?" Spike said, plopping into the floor.

"NO, the Winter Moon Celebration is today Spike, and I can't afford anymore distrac-!"

Before Twilight could finish, a huge explosion occurred behind her, leaving a huge gaping hole in the wall. Night Shadow then quickly ran inside to get his bag from his room.

"Night Shadow, what the buck are you doing!" Twilight yelled angrily.

"Trying to save the world here!" He replied before kicking down his door.

"Oh no you don't, you're leaving NOW!" Twilight shouted, attempting to teleport the intruder out.

"You and I both know that won't work on me!" Night Shadow declared, grabbing his bag while fighting off the teleportation spell.

"Why can't you ponies just leave me alone!?" Twilight screeched.

Night Shadow then blasted another hole into the wall before running off.

"Thanks a lot Night Shadow, now I have to fix your mess again!" Twilight yelled, as the stress got to her head.

* * *

In a secluded area away from civilization

"This should be far enough." Night Shadow said, putting his bag in the snow, removing a black screwdriver.

Putting his left foreleg onto a nearby rock, he unscrewed the latch for his upper suppressor. Inside were multiple flashing lights, cables, and wires connected to each other.

"I can't believe that I have lasted so long with these things. Sadly, I think my time is running out and I still have no solution to stopping the inevitable. Heck, not even the Elements of Harmony could cure it, so maybe Twilight can. If she returns the love that I give her that is, then I just might have a chance." Night Shadow said, adjusting some wires.

After five minutes of fixing the device he moved on to the lower one and did the same. The two suppressors went back to glowing purple before he removed his foreleg from the rock. He then placed his other foreleg onto the rock stand and popped open the suppressor.

'So far so good… for now. I just need to adjust this and-'

Striking a wrong wire, a flash of light streamed across his eyes as he heard voices.

"Is this not what you asked for… the perfect soldier to do away with your enemies?"

"Yes it is, I just expected him to be more, you know… better kept."

"Do you want this feebleminded idiot or not!"

"Of course, he shall be taken off of your hooves."

"I don't have hooves you confused hybrid!"

Night Shadow then came back to reality after hearing the last sentence.

"No, please… don't remind me of my past." He said regretfully.

Continuing on to the next device, he made sure that he didn't hit a lose wire. However, this did not stop another flashback from hitting him. Only this time, he could see the scene more clearly.

"Don't worry master, these two sisters could never surpass you in means of power or knowledge. Allow me to show you what I've learned by destroying them as my final test to prove my worth!"

The scene before him was of him, standing before his old master and friend, in a throne room. The two sisters were blurred from his memory, but he could remember one being white and the other of a dark blue before he snapped back into consciousness.

"These flashbacks are either becoming stronger or too real for comfort." Night Shadow said, as his heart rapidly started to beat.

Finally finishing his forelegs, he sat down next to a tree to work on his hind-legs. When he finished one of his legs, he shut his eyes and rested his head on the bark of the tree. This time the image was of him in a third-person view of his past self laying before a white alicorn.

"Celestia please stop! You have already punished me once before by turning the love of my life against me. What more do you want of me!?" He said, tears forming into his eyes

"I'm sorry Night Shadow, but until you turn from your evil ways, you will never be able to live among us. You are a danger to all that live among you and I can't allow you to continue your reign of terror!" Celestia boomed, as a portal opened behind Night Shadow that threatened to suck him in.

"Don't you realize that your acts of judgment won't change me but only make me worse! I beg of you, don't do this again!" Night Shadow screamed in fear, latching on to whatever he could grab.

"I really wish there was another way Night Shadow, I really do. But this is the only way… I'm sorry." Celestia said, as tears streamed down her face as Night Shadow lost his hold.

"CELESTIAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Night Shadow screamed out of horror as he reopened his eyes.

"THAT FELT WAY TOO REAL TO BE A FLASHBACK!" He yelled, as a shiver went down his spine. "I should finish this quickly before anything else happens."

True to his word, he worked quickly on the last two inhibitors. He focused on his work to the point where everything around him seemed to slow down and blur. Straining too hard on the assignment, his eyes blackened out as he appeared in a black void. When he attempted to move, he realized that he was bound down by shackles that were chained to two iron pillars. Soon a sudden shock hit him harder than a ton of bricks as he screamed in agony.

When the yells dissipated, two mares appeared from the void of darkness, laughing at his pain. The one to his left had a dark blue coat, gray mane and tail with dark sapphire eyes. The one to his right had a black coat, purple mane and tail with bright amber eyes. As the laughing continued, Night Shadow's darker self approached him with a menacing smirk and motioned him to look up. What Night Shadow witnessed was Twilight hanging from a cage, completely bound and unable to speak due to a magical enchantment.

What he would see next would be engraved into his memory forever. Dark Night Shadow caused the cage's bars to glow bright red before they burst into flames before Night Shadow's eyes. When his horn ceased to glow dark red, Night Shadow heard the screams of pain coming from Twilight while the other three laughed at her suffering. Night Shadow attempted to move and try anything to free her, but the bindings were too strong, forcing him to watch and hear Twilight burn. Soon the cage fell and shattered in front of him, showing what was left of Twilight.

If Night Shadow wasn't sobbing and filled with anger before… he was now. The only thing left of Twilight was ash… nothing but ash and dust as Dark Night Shadow levitated the remains and threw it into Night Shadow's face. Night Shadow attempted to break free of his bindings and make these three pay with their lives, but instead was slammed down onto the cold floor and tied down with magical tendrils. Dark Night Shadow then leaped over him and crushed his horn with his hind hooves, resulting in Night Shadow screeching in pain. His darker self then conjured up a dagger and slammed it into Night Shadow chest and made a huge circle, ignoring the screams of his victim. Using his dark magic, Dark Night shadow slammed his hoof into the hole in Night Shadow and removed his heart. Before Night Shadow went unconscious, his darker self lit his heart on fire and said the words, "It's not like you used it anyways."

"YOU SICK ^%^#*&$!" Night Shadow shouted as he abruptly woke up. "That was a dream? How could… it have felt so real?" Night Shadow said, before being relieved that it was just a nightmare.

Looking up, he saw that the sun was setting in the distance.

"How long have I been out for?" He asked himself before fixing the last suppressor.

'I guess it doesn't matter, I need to get back to Sugar Cube Corner and tell Pinkie where I've been.' He thought before teleporting to his destination.

Two hours before the incident…

"These ponies need to invent a watch, it's not like everypony can read the sun's positioning." Night Shadow bickered to himself.

He walked up to the main entrance and noticed that all the lights were out. Lightly tapping the door, it creaked open to reveal the empty bakery being illuminated by the sun set. Slowly walking in with caution and looking around, he started to get intimidated.

"I swear Pinkie, if you're dressed up as Slendermane I'm not going to hold back." He said, putting his hooves up.

Instantly the lights came, cameras flashed, and multiple ponies shouted, "Surprise" as Night Shadow hit the ground, dazed.

"How was that for a surprise party!" Pinkie shouted, slapping a party hat on his head.

"I think I'm blind." Night Shadow said still stunned.

"Nonsense you silly filly, if you're blind how are you going celebrate your birthday?" Pinkie said, leaving Night Shadow's presence.

"Oh Pinkie, you shouldn't have." Night Shadow said as his vision returned to show Pinkie on a mountain of presents. "You really shouldn't have."

"Hey Night Shadow!" Rainbow said, walking next to him. "Happy Birthday you big jerk."

"Normally I would say takes one to know one… but knowing you that's the best compliment I've gotten, so thanks." Night Shadow said with a smile. "Wait Pinkie, I just remembered, you said the party would be at eight?"

"Yes I did… but everypony came early and got ready really really fast. So we did a surprise party for you!"

Night Shadow looked around to see all of his friends and other ponies at the party enjoying themselves with games, food, and other things… except Twilight, who was nowhere to be found.

"Then where's Twilight?" He asked.

"We tried to get her to come, we really did." Rarity said disappointed.

"She insisted on finishin' her celebration doohicky." Applejack finished

"We're really sorry." Fluttershy said, apologetically.

Night Shadow had a look of disappointment before he cheered up again.

"You shouldn't apologize for things that aren't your fault Fluttershy… after all this is supposed to be a party, SO LETS PARTY!"

His friends then assumed party mode as they joined the rest of the ponies. It was just like any ordinary party, well… if you've been around Pinkie long enough that is. The only thing out of the ordinary was Night Shadow. Being his first birthday party, he was practically clueless to the entire ordeal. He just guessed at what to do and what to say, and it turned out fine. One hour of partying passed before Night Shadow got his friends to sit with him to ask each other questions.

"Don't you ever find it awkward that all your best friends are girls?" Rainbow asked bluntly.

"It's not like it matters, you're the best friends I've ever had… who am I to pick and choose." Night Shadow said, chugging his seventeenth cup of punch. "Pinkie I've always wondered, how do you jump around and run so much without losing energy?"

"Silly Nighty, always trying to use logic. I just do it." Pinkie declared.

"Figures, I don't think anyone can describe you logically." Night Shadow admitted.

"Well I'll be right back, I have to finish the last thing on the cake." Pinkie said, leaving the room.

"Okay Rainbow Dash, I have a question for you, did you dye your hair like a Rainbow or did you spill Technicolor bleach into it by accident?" Night Shadow joked.

"Ha ha very funny… my mane is like this naturally." Rainbow remarked.

"I-I have a question Night Shadow." Fluttershy asked, somehow overcoming the noise in the background. "Is it true that you like Twilight?"

"I will be blunt with all of you, I really like Twilight, I really do. I'm just afraid she won't in return. So after the party… can you come and help me ask her out?" Night Shadow asked, nervous.

They all agreed to help afterward, adding their own side comments of how they will help. Then Pinkie launched out of the door and grabbed Night Shadow.

"It's time to sing happy birthday!" Pinkie announced to everypony.

After Night Shadow awkwardly stood there while everypony sang happy birthday, it was time to blow out the candles.

"Yeah Night Shadow, do what the narrator says." Pinkie suggested.

"I know what he said… it's just that I don't know what you mean." Night Shadow asked, confused.

"What do you mean you don't know what I mean?" Pinkie asked, smiling.

"How to blow out the candles." Night Shadow said as everpony stared at him awkwardly.

"That's easy, you just use your mouth and blow on it, like this." Pinkie demonstrated.

"Oh okay, I was derping for a moment there." Night shadow said, laughing at himself.

Forty-five minutes later/fifteen minutes before the incident….

"Goodbye everypony!" Night Shadow said as they all left.

"I think Night Shadow should open gifts now." Pinkie said, handing him a gray present.

"Yay I got a gray box!" Night Shadow said excited.

"Your supposed to open it genius." Rainbow said smirking.

"Why would I want to do that?" Night Shadow asked, confused.

"Because there's a present in it, silly." Pinkie chuckled.

"So I get two gifts for the price of one, awesome." Night Shadow said excited.

Everypony was now wondering if he was just joking or being serious.

"Hey look, I got a muffin!" Night shadow shouted.

"Well let's open the others." Pinkie suggested.

"That can wait, remember what I wanted all of you to do… I think I'm finally ready." Night Shadow said with confidence.

"Then let's get you that date!" Rainbow declared to him.

One minute before the incident

"Dear Princess Luna" Twilight wrote, some tears forming in her eyes. "I am sorry to inform you that I have failed to carry out the assignment that you have entrusted me with. Please try to forgive me, but I understand if you can't, so I will accept any punishment that you will give me. I will try to-"

There was a loud knock on the door, next to the huge gaping hole with minor repairs.

"Twilight is it okay if I come in?" Rainbow said knocking again.

"No!" Twilight said in a mix of anger and depression.

Rainbow disregarded this, flew in the large hole, and opened the door from the inside, letting the others in. Twilight's anger was now increasing, but not noticeable to the others.

"We need to ask you a serious question." Applejack pushed.

"Didn't you hear me the first time… I said NO!" Twilight shouted.

"It's important!" Pinkie said, bouncing up to her.

"Pinkie, you're the reason I was distracted yesterday!" Twilight accused.

"There's no need to yell darling, we're just trying to-"

"Trying to what, distract me so I can't accomplish what the Princess of the Night assigned me to do!?" Twilight yelled to Rarity.

"Hold on, you never said anything about-"

"Don't even get me started with you Rainbow, with your Iron Pony Competition and pestering about Night Shadow!" Twilight shouted, practically losing all respect.

"Rainbow's right here sugarcube, we never heard of this-"

"I was given the task to schedule the Winter Moon Celebration TODAY! I never finished one buckin' thing because of all your distractions!"

"Umm… g-girls, can we stop fighting." Fluttershy said, attempting to calm the group down.

"Now I have to send this letter to Luna saying why I couldn't do a simple task for her… and it's all your FAULT!" Twilight screamed, silencing everything in the room.

"Twilight?"

Everypony looked at the doorway to see Night Shadow, with a confused look on his face.

"Why are you yelling at your friends?" He asked, a bit frightened.

"You… you're the one who is truly to blame!" Twilight yelled, teleporting into Night Shadow.

"W-what… I didn't do anything." Night Shadow said frightened.

"You didn't do ANYTHING… no the question is, WHAT DIDN'T YOU DO!" Twilight shouted furiously into his face.

"I-I don't know what you mean, stop yelling at me." Night Shadow pleaded.

"You're the one that planned it all, planned everything to make me look bad in front of the princesses!" Twilight accused.

"I just wanted you to have fun… what's wrong with that?" Night Shadow said, trying to prove his case.

"WHAT'S WRONG WITH IT!? Ever since you got here you've been nothing but trouble and a pain to me and my friends.

"That's not true, you're-"

"You embarrassed me in front of everypony, trash my house, start a rivalry with Rainbow Dash, eat all the food I have, spread a rumor that I actually liked you, tell me to look for an imaginary book, make me waste my time to find you in the everfree forest and give me a fake letter from Celestia! What else did I miss… oh yeah, BLEW NOT ONLY ONE, BUT TWO HOLES IN MY HOUSE!"

"I never meant to harm-"

"Get out of my house… AND NEVER COME BACK!" Twilight shouted, throwing what was left of Night Shadow's things into his face.

Night Shadow eyes were streaming with tears at the last words she said.

"I was wrong about you Twilight… I loved you and this is what you do to me?" Night Shadow said, tears rolling down his muzzle. "I try to give you happiness… and you throw me out! I HATE YOU!" Night Shadow declared before running out of the door.

When he made his disappearance, the grandfather clock on Twilights wall started to chime signifying it was eight o' clock.

*DING*

Instantly Twilight was hit with a flash back.

"Darn it Twilight, why do you have to be so cute when you're confused?" Future Night Shadow asked.

*DING*

Another flashback occurred

"I should of had more time than this, something is affecting the spell! Twilight whatever you do, when I walk through that door eight days from now at exactly 8:00 pm, do not-" Future Night Shadow attempted to say before vanishing.

*DING*

"It's just that your bracelets started to glow red again." She remembered saying, a bit concerned.

"They're not bracelets, Twilight, they're suppressors. They prevent me from turning into… that."

*DING*

"What do you mean?" She said, looking at him worried.

"It means that without these, everyone would be in danger of… me." Night Shadow said softly.

*DING*

"Twilight, that's not going to happen unless something very drastic ensued, please don't be scared." Night Shadow said approaching her slowly.

*DING*

"And under what conditions would you…do that?" She asked still concerned.

"Only if somepony very dear to me was hurt, or if my heart was… broken."

*DING*

"You don't have to feel like that ever again. Me, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Applejack and Fluttershy; we are your friends now and we will never betray you." She said, wiping the tears away from Night Shadow's eyes, holding him tightly.

*DING*

"Promise me… promise me that you won't leave me like they did. I care about you so much, all I ask is that you do the same." Night Shadow asked holding on to Twilight.

"I Promise."

The flash back ended at the last stroke of the clock.

"What have I done? NIGHT SHADOW, COME BACK!" Twilight asked herself before running after him.

* * *

"Little sister, why have you not raised the moon?" Celestia asked in a concerned tone.

"I sense much pain, anger, …and darkness."


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: The End Begins

**_(_****_Authors notes_****_: Close-quarters fighting scenes and moves are based off of ponies on their hind-legs, similar to how humans fight or the way the mane six fight in the Canterlot wedding. There are some parts where they fight on all fours, for example: charging at a pony. If it is still confusing, let me know, and I will do my best in the future. Thank you.)_**

**_Edit: This chapter does get a bit violent…_**

Night Shadow stood on a cliffside in the Everfree Forest, overlooking the huge plains of Equestria. Looking down from the ledge, he couldn't tell the trees from the bushes due to the height. Looking up he saw the beauty of the full moon. He thought this would be the last thing he'd ever see…

"Twilight hates me, my friends abandon me, my family's leaving me, WHAT MORE CAN YOU TAKE AWAY FROM ME!?" Night Shadow screamed over the land. "Ever since I was born, my life has been a living hell, constantly feeling pain and losing loved ones! I have done nothing to deserve this. WHY… WHY DO YOU DO THIS TO ME!?" He asked, tears streaming over his eyes.

There was a long pause of silence as rain started to fall over Equestria.

"You think it's just a big joke Celestia, to just toy with somepony's life just because they don't follow your laws! You wanted me to submit to your power by DESTROYING EVERYTHING! I should have known that Twilight was to be your instrument of revenge for finally ending me… and it worked. It actually worked…and now, you can truly say that you've robbed me of every, single, thing that I have ever worked for."

He said, approaching closer to the edge of no return.

"It not like they cared about me anyway… I will soon be forgotten by everypony. The only comfort I can give myself now… is that it's all about to end." He stated, taking his first step off of safety and into the depths of darkness.

Just before he met his fate, a red burst of light flung him back away from his doom.

"That's it, huh… you just give up?" The dark voice rang through Night Shadow's head.

"No… not now." Night Shadow begged.

"Throughout the time that I have watched, YOU HAVE BEEN NOTHING BUT A FAILURE! You have stood against your enemies for so long, and now you just give up?! No… I won't have any of it! Three chances I gave you, three times you failed, I believe you struck out. Now, IT'S MY TURN TO SHOW THESE PONIES WHAT TRUE POWER IS!"

"W-what are you doing!?" Night Shadow said, unable to control his right foreleg approaching one of his suppressors.

"WHAT I SHOULD HAVE DONE A LONG TIME AGO!"

Then, using Night Shadow as a puppet, he smashed one of the devices with his hoof.

"No… no… NO!" Night Shadow shouted, eyes bursting with bright red color.

"Now you will watch and witness what could have been yours." The dark voice continued to say.

"I-I'm not like that now, I don't want to hurt others anymore!" Night Shadow pleaded.

"I don't care what you want… I'm going to make everypony that ever hurt you pay for what they've done."

"Stop it… STOP IT!" Night Shadow screamed, trying to control the situation with magic, but realized the aura was red… and not his anymore.

Night Shadow continued to scream out of panic and pain as lightning boomed throughout Equestria and the rain grew heavier. His purple aura burst into a dark red , engulfing the screaming unicorn as he lost all control of his body. This continued for a while until Twilight finally found him. Aware of the situation, she screamed his name to get his attention. Suddenly everything stopped, giving Night Shadow control of himself once more.

"Night Shadow?" Twilight asked, still unsure and with regret in her voice.

Night Shadow slowly turned around to face her, looking darker than normal.

"Twilight… you did this to me." He said before his eyes flashed with red once more as the suppressors burst off of his legs.

Night Shadow let out one last cry before black aura engulfed him again. He exploded with a burst of red light that could have been seen for miles. What stood in the crater was a unicorn with the same features as Night Shadow, but only now… he was black with a dark red mane and tail. His cutie mark resembled a red energy ball surrounded by electricity. When he spoke, it sent shivers down Twilight's spine.

"I must thank you Twilight… for finally freeing me that is. However, that doesn't mean you won't suffer like the rest, I will just save you for last."

Twilight's eyes were now full of tears after realizing that Night Shadow was gone.

"Don't cry Twilight, for soon you will be part of a new era of rule, and you will have front row seats… to the fall of Equestria!" He said, laughing menacingly.

"You can't do this Night Shadow, Celestia and Luna will stop you!" Twilight shouted.

"My name is not Night Shadow anymore, you may address me as Dark Fire, THE PRINCE OF DARKNESS! As for Celestia and Luna, hahahahahaha… let them try to stop me!" He declared, confidently.

"I'm sorry Night Shadow… please; snap out of it, this isn't like you!" Twilight begged.

"You really don't know a thing about us do you? Night Shadow was trying to turn all of you against Celestia and help him defeat her. Don't you see, he was evil to begin with and never cared for any of you." Dark Fire stated.

"I don't believe a word you're saying!" Twilight yelled to him.

"You don't have to, it's not like your opinion matters to anypony."

Silence fell over the two as the rain continued to fall on both of them.

"Now I'm going to prove to all of Equestria that even a demigoddess like Celestia…CAN FALL!"

"I won't let you do this!" Twilight shouted as magic flowed freely from her horn.

"Do it then, try to hurt me!" Dark Fire declared.

Twilight tried to use whatever she could to somehow attack Dark Fire, but underneath all of the evil, she could still see Night Shadow's face, not wanting to harm him.

"That's what I thought… and if you have any more ideas of rebelling against me, just remember this."

Dark Fire went back to the cliff side that overlooked a huge portion of land and with one flash of light from his horn destroyed everything with a magical blast of power. Nothing remained but a large crater of dirt and ash. He laughed at his creation before teleporting in an explosion of darkness and fire.

"H-he's completely lost his mind, I have to warn Celestia!" Twilight Shouted before teleporting to Canterlot.

* * *

Dark clouds enveloped the skies of Canterlot as the rain and lightning grew stronger and louder with every passing minute. Meanwhile two royal guards stood to watch over the main gate to Celestia's castle. Even under the harsh conditions, they didn't move or speak until dark fog from all directions, started to approach them. When the fog stopped dead in its tracks, the dark unicorn emerged slowly and walked towards the gates until he was two feet from it. The two guards then jumped in his way.

"Hault! Visiting hours are over, stallion. Return to your home or be charged with a fine." One of the guards ordered.

"Oh I'm not here for visiting…I'm here for much more than that." Dark Fire said, chuckling.

"That wasn't a request stallion, leave now or be fined."

"Such harsh punishments for something so little… do you even know who I am!" Dark Fire demanded.

"This is your last chance, leave now or-!"

"Yeah yeah, just one more question, can you open the gate?" Dark Fire asked before grabbing the stallion and throwing him into the golden gate, causing it to swing open. "Thank you very much."

"That's it, you're under arrest!" The other guard stated.

Dark Fire then vanished in a shadowy aura and reappeared, pinning the guard by his throat into a nearby wall.

"Tell your princesses that, just for name's sake, Night Shadow has returned for vengeance!" Dark Fire ordered before flinging the guard into a worm hole.

The guard soon reappeared in Celestia's thrown room, leaving everypony in the room shocked.

"What's the meaning of this!?" Luna demanded.

"There's a mad unicorn outside trying to get in the castle, he said his name was Night Shadow!"

The guards in the room didn't seem to care, but after hearing Celestia's reaction to it, they became worried.

"Guards, prepare to defend the palace!" Celestia ordered as they scrambled to different locations.

* * *

Dark Fire slowly trotted in the outer courtyard until reencountering the guard he threw.

"Sweet dreams." He joked before hoofing the guard in the face, knocking him out.

"Come no closer criminal scum!" A guard wearing more distinctive armor declared, standing in front of ten more stallions.

"Oh look, you must be the meet and greet group." Dark Fire mocked.

"Charge!" The guards shouted, running towards him.

Dark Fire laughed at their petty attempt before summoning a huge wall of fire before them, stopping the guards in their tracks. With them distracted, he leaped through the wall, knocking out two guards at once with his hooves. Using his magic, he magnetized the armor of the other eight guards, and pulled them towards him. Punching each one in the muzzle, he made two piles of unconscious stallions. The last guard with distinctive armor backed up a bit out of shock, but was stopped when he bumped into something. Turning around, he saw Dark Fire smiling evilly at him.

"Hey… that's some cool armor you have." Dark Fire complimented.

The stallion gulped nervously.

* * *

Inside the castle's main door.

"I hate this job!" One of the guards said to his friend.

"Dude, you get paid to watch a door, stop complaining." His friend said back to him

"I just wish something exciting would happen soon, and fast!"

Just then the stallion that stood watched outside, was flung threw the door, knocking it down instantly. Dark Fire then walked in, indifferent of who saw or heard.

"You mean something like this!" The stallion said to the board guard.

"Exactly, let's get him!"

The two guards lunged at the intruder from both sides before getting back-hooved into the walls behind them.

"Stupid low paid teenagers." He remarked as he continued walking.

Fifteen guards from both sides approached Dark Fire as they encircled him. Dark Fire showed his indifference and confidence by allowing them to surround him until there appeared to be no way out.

"There's no way out for you, give up!" A guard of higher rank declared.

"Yeah, the narrator just said that genius!" Dark Fire scorned before punching him in the face.

The guards then started to attack him in all directions in pairs of twos, threes, fours and even fives, attempting to capture the unicorn. This all resulted in failure because of Dark Fire's superior strength. He defeated each one with simple punches and kicks. The ten remaining guards then retreated to the other remaining door and regrouped to make one last attempt. Dark Fire simply stood there, then he charged at them. The ten remaining guards charged to meet him in the middle for one last attack.

What they didn't expect was for Dark Fire to jump in front of them. He slammed his hooves together in a clapping motion, sending them flying into random decorations. Dark Fire then grabbed the higher ranked guard and slammed him into the next very large door. Everypony was instantly shocked at the sudden intuition, telling him that news of his arrival still didn't reach the level he was on. Regardless he could care less as more guards came from practically nowhere to try to fight him. This time however, it was a mix of unicorns and pegasi, giving him a bit more excitement.

Running in the center of the hallway, he blasted unicorns with magic and fought earth ponies with hoof-to-hoof combat. The pegasi guards were like the earth pony battalions, except way more agile, able to dodge him easier. That didn't stop him from punching their teeth out however, as he slowly but surely toyed around with every guard in the room. As more guards flooded the room, the bigger the body count became. After bucking a pegasus into a pillar, he saw some unicorns lining up side by side.

"READY!" A red unicorn captain shouted to his firing squad of twenty unicorns.

"AIM!" The voice boomed as the first ten crouched down to allow the others firing room.

"Fire." Dark Fire whispered, getting up on his hind-legs, deflecting every magic blast back at the casters.

The captain stood there in anger and fear as he summoned all the magic he had to fire one last beam at Dark Fire. Dark Fire then ran towards the unicorn at full speed, again indifferent of the situation. When the captain fired his wave of magic at Dark Fire, he lunged towards it, pushed all the magic back with his hoof and punched right through the blast, hitting the unicorn in the face. This sent him crashing into the twin gold-plated doors, however they did not open on contact.

"I'm impressed captain, not only did you fight decently, but you've left an impressive dent in the golden door."

"I… hate… you." The captain struggled to say.

"Who doesn't hate me?" He said, leaning the guard on the door. "Now be a good stallion and don't move, this will only hurt a lot!" Dark Fire said, laughing maniacally before bucking the captain all the way through the golden door.

The captain skid across the floor before stopping in front of a barricade of seventy royal and lunar guards of every pony race. Dark Fire looked around, slightly impressed.

"You made this barricade just for me, I don't know if I should be impressed or disappointed." He complimented.

"FIRE!" Everypony shouted, launching a barrage of magic towards him.

Dark Fire then stood up on his hind hooves and casted a magical shield that diverted thirty separate colored beams around him. Behind the barricade, twenty pegasi flew in the air in sync and dived towards Dark Fire while twenty earth ponies ran to tackle him. He waited for just the right moment before releasing the built up power in one explosive burst that instantly blew over every guard on the ground and in the air.

"This floor bores me… you, tell me where Celestia is."

"You won't find her." The lunar captain said before losing consciousness.

"Then I'm going up!" Dark Fire said before tossing him in the ceiling like a javelin.

Jumping through a hole in the ceiling, he casted a magical ball that magnetized every guard in the room, sending them into the ball and causing it to explode in a magical outburst.

"I've forgotten how big this place was, but she can't hide forever." He stated before blasting his way into another room.

* * *

Celestia overlooked the castle, hearing and witnessing multiple explosions that shook the very foundation it.

"Celestia… my platoon and I are ready, but if we fail, I need to let you know-"

"Don't think like that Shining Armor, you're going to make it through this, I know how Night Shadow is." Celestia said calmly to him.

"Yes I believe you, but by the off chance that we don't make it, I want to say that it's been an honor." Shining Armor said, making his departure.

"One more thing Shining Armor…take Black Blade with you." Celestia said before resuming her observation.

"Of course princess." He said before departing the room. 'Black Blade, the captain of Luna's guard? This is going to be harder than I thought.' He thought worried.

Celestia continued to watch as she slowly lost ground with her guards.

"Tia, we are slowly losing ground, what are we going to do?" Luna asked, standing next to her sister.

"Little sister, I need you to find whatever guards you can and get out of here while you can." Celestia said concerned.

Silence fell upon both of them as the rain continued.

"If he's that powerful, then you can't face him alone!" Luna said, not backing down.

"I can't afford to lose you to darkness…not again." Celestia said, still regretful.

"We will fight him together, like we always have with every threat we came across."

* * *

"FALL BA-!" A soldier attempted to say before being blasted with magic.

"How brave of you… but such a waste." Dark Fire scorned as he walked past multiple defeated ponies. "There doesn't seem to be any left on this floor, better check the next one."

He was about to blast another hole in the ceiling before four guards descended from separate pillars, standing on all four corners of the room.

"Elite Lunar Guards… I've heard stories of your training. Don't disappoint me." Dark Fire said, assuming a fighting position.

The four guards attacked him in synchronization, attempting to hit Dark Fire at least once with their punches and bucks, but all for not. Dodging every attack, he countered one of the punches and delivered a punch of his own. However, to his own shock, he wasn't instantly knocked out like the others. The dodging continued until one of the guards launched a purple magic charge at him. Deflecting it into the ceiling, Dark Fire then teleported into the next floor through the hole created. The four guards quickly followed, continuing their assault of punches until Dark Fire punched one in the stomach and side kicked him across the face into the wall.

"So you can feel pain? Pity, you're going to feel a lot of it." Dark Fire declared to the other three guards.

They growled in anger as they charged him again, soon afterwards Dark Fire knocked two of them away to deal with only one. The guard put all his weight into his punch and as a result to Dark Fire dodging, lost his balance. He took advantage of this and grabbed his hoof, pulling the guard towards him, and elbowing him in the jaw. With the guard distracted by the blow, he then delivered a massive hit to his chest with his hoof, slid upward to his jaw, picked up the guard by his neck, and fired a magical burst that launched him into the ceiling. As the guard came back down, the other two guards nodded to each other as they vanished in a dark smoke.

"They think I'm an amateur don't they." Dark Fire said to himself.

He then casted a ball of light that illuminated the room so brightly, that the room itself turned white from brightness. After two seconds, it vanished, revealing two dazed lunar guards. Dark Fire chuckled to himself before attacking the two guards again. Two minutes passed before the fight lead to the door where Dark Fire planned to go through. Ducking under, the guards smashed their hooves into the metal door and were unable to move. With that, he quickly gave both guards twenty jabs in the stomach.

With the guards completely immobilized, me smashed both of their heads together and knocked them unconscious. Dark Fire then kicked the door open, taking two steps forward before magical restraints hit him around his horn. He was then tackled by fifteen guards.

"We got him, we actually did it!" Shining Armor shouted joyfully. "Ok stallions, bring this criminal to the throne room."

As they carried Dark Fire off, he couldn't help but chuckle at them for leading him right to his target.

"What do you think about this, Black Blade?" Shining asked.

Black Blade was an extremely large earth pony. When they compared him to Celestia, they measured equally in height and length. He had a very dark blue coat with a spiked up purple mane and tail. He also had purple eyes and a shield with two crossed black swords behind it. What was unique about him, besides his height, was that his irises didn't reflect off any light, even bright sunlight. This made him a perfect candidate for captain of the Lunar Guard.

"Just get him to Luna." He said angrily.

"Are you ever happy with anything?" Shining Armor asked, relieved of the situation.

Black Blade simply growled at him before pushing the huge throne room doors open with ease. All of the guards and even Shining Armor were surprised at this feat. Dark Fire, however, took mental notes of his strength.

"Celestia, we captured the intruder!" Shining announced to everypony.

In the throne room was Celestia, Luna, Cadence and Blue Blood all gathered together.

"Wait, how did you bind him?" Celestia shouted, worried.

"Once we placed the magical restraints on him and put him in chains, he was easy to capture."

"You didn't use anything else!" Celestia stated, now in panic.

"He's a unicorn… why would we-"

"HAHAHAHAHHAHAHA! Do you inform your guard of anything Celestia? Your lack of information will get your guards destroyed!" Dark Fire stated.

"Silence pony, your rampage is over; you've lost again Night Shadow!" Luna shouted angrily.

"I'm not Night Shadow anymore, and as for you Luna… I have only just begun."

"Your strength is gone and your magic has been rendered useless, what could you possibly do now?" Shining demanded.

Dark Fire just smiled as he stood on his hind hooves and started to ascend in the air slowly, carrying all the guards that bounded him.

"How is he… what the!?" Shining asked, in complete shock.

"NO GET AWAY FROM HIM!" Celestia shouted to her guards.

"Magic isn't the only thing I can control, allow me to demonstrate." Dark Fire said, proudly.

He then crossed his hooves together in an "X" as red aura surrounded his body. He then shouted loudly as an energy wave erupted from his body, sending the guards around him flying in all directions. The explosion busted all of the lights, disintegrated the restraints and bindings on him. He then stretched his fore-hooves out of pride.

"It's been so long since I've done that…I've forgotten the feeling of energy manipulation." Dark Fire declared. "It's too bad that the guards couldn't take it though… such a shame."

Shining Armor and Black Blade were the only ones that weren't knocked out after the blast. The two captains brushed it off, getting ready to fight.

"I find it so surprising that you would still want to fight me, even after demonstrating my power. I don't know if you're being brave or just stupid." Dark Fire mocked.

Shining then shot a magic blast to hit Dark Fire, but when it made contact, the image of him vanished in a cloud of black fog.

"Where did he go?!" Shining panicked.

"You shouldn't use your eyes to rely on everything you do." Dark Fire said in the shadows.

He then reappeared through the floor and uppercut Shining in the chin. This caused Shining to skid across the floor and everypony to gasp in shock. Dark Fire then kicked Black Blade in the face, but instead of crashing into a wall like he planned, Black Blade simply looked at Dark Fire unamused.

"That's impressive." Dark Fire complimented.

Black Blade then lunged at Dark Fire to punch him square in the face, but missed when Dark Fire dodged out of the way.

"Ooo, I felt some wind on that." Dark Fire teased as the purple stallion continued to miss, becoming angered. "What's the matter, can't hit your target?"

"EEERRRGGHH SHUT UP!" Black Blade shouted as he punched the ground where Dark Fire used to be before he evaded.

This created a huge crater in the ground as cracks shot out from all directions because of the force of the impact. By this time, Shining had recovered and joined back into the fight. He created a magic bubble to shield him from any magical blows or attacks.

"Such strength, but too slow to hit your target, allow me to demonstrate how to properly use it." Dark Fire said, as his hair glowed bright red with energy and became spiked up.

"You won't be demonstrating anything Night Shadow!" Shining shouted as he launched a blue wave of magic towards Dark Fire.

He then blocked it and diverted the magic around him, blasting a huge hole behind him.

"For the last time… MY NAME IS NOT NIGHT SHADOW!" Dark Fire screamed in rage as he shot a red ball of energy at Shining.

Shining couldn't react in time as he attempted to shield himself with his hooves. Luckily for him, the magical shield repelled the blast, but was shattered when he hit the wall from the explosion. Dark Fire was about to throw another energy ball until Black Blade's hoof stopped him. Black Blade then attempted to punch Dark Fire, but he ducked under him and kick-flipped his chin. Black Blade was stunned for a moment, but it was a moment too long as Dark Fire sent a burst of air into Black Blade's chest, sending him into the wall. Not letting up, Dark Fire teleported and kneed Black Blade in his stomach.

When he bent down in pain, Dark Fire punched his muzzle back into the wall, making an even bigger crater within it, and then rapidly punched him while he was still pinned. Black Blade then went limp from the beating, but was magically held up by Dark Fire.

"I can feel so much pain in your heart… so many questions unanswered… so much built up anger and hatred. I can help you if you would let me, but only if you're willing to learn." He said, almost feeling sorry for him before releasing the magical hold he had on the stallion.

"I'm not done with you yet!" Shining yelled, as he charged Dark Fire.

Dark Fire then lunged under Shining and tossed him over his back, making him slide across the floor. Shining then fired one last blast of magic at Dark Fire, which he couldn't simply let pass by. Dark Fire then fired a magical charge of his own that collided with Shining's to make a beautiful but deadly display of power. After about thirty seconds, Dark Fire exerted more power into his blast until he defeated Shining in the duel.

"I'm sorry Celestia, Luna, and especially you Cadance… I've failed you." Shining struggled to say before fading into unconsciousness.

"Hey, what about me?" Blue Blood said, annoyed.

Dark Fire started to laugh menacingly and he approached the princesses.

"I don't know who you two are, but I'm here for Celestia and Luna… mainly Celestia so hoof them over nice and easy." Dark Fire demanded.

"Well I don't know who you think you are, but you're in no position to demand from us. We're royalty and I'm not going to listen to a peasant like you." Blue Blood stated arrogantly.

"Then listen to this!" Dark Fire yelled, casting a blue smoke around the arrogant prince.

When the smoke dissipated, the only thing left was a blue frog.

"What did you do to him!?" Cadance commanded.

"Can't you read what the narrator wrote, geez… I turned him into a frog, although I think this is one prince no mare would ever kiss."

"Change me back this instant!" The frog croaked.

"I'm sorry, but I don't think you're in a position to demand from me." Dark Fire said before conjuring a magically sealed cage and tossing him into it. "Do you have any more smart comments!?"

At this point, Cadance was caring for Shining, attempting to wake him up, while Celestia and Luna stood side-by-side at the foot of the throne.

"We must strike now Tia, while we still have a chance." Luna pleaded telepathically.

"I-I can't Luna… I just can't." Celestia said sorrowfully.

"Why have you always held back when we fought Night Shadow? We are trying to defend the freedom of Equestria, Tia." Luna pointed out.

"Luna, I'm sorry that I have never told you this… but Night Shadow is-"

"Hey… what are you girls thinking about?" Dark Fire mocked, invading their conversation.

Luna had enough of this unicorn and was going to fight him with or without Tia. As her eyes brightened up to a pure white, conjured armor appeared from the shadows and attached itself to her. This was the same armor that Nightmare Moon wore, giving her a height and power boost.

"It's about time one of you mared up. Now, come at me bro!" Dark Fire motioned with his hoof.

Luna's magical aura grew three times its size as she lunged towards him. Dark Fire leaped to the left just before Luna hit him and bucked her to the side. The attack made a metallic clang noise, but nothing else. Dark Fire was confused at first because he couldn't remember Luna having armor that protected her sides, but when he turned around, he saw that Luna had blocked it with her hoof.

"At least you can recover quickly." Dark Fire stated, circling around Luna like a wolf.

"We have had enough of your talking, now start fighting for real!" Luna said, using the royal Canterlot voice.

"Oh, using your big boomy voice I see. Why don't I try it." Dark fire smirked as he took a deep breath.

Luna then teleported in front of Dark Fire for a surprise attack, but this is when he screamed at the top of his lungs. Luna was blown back a good twenty feet from the sound waves that Dark Fire was emitting from his voice, which also shattered the floor tiles in front of him along with what little windows remained.

"You see Luna, you had no chance to defeat me in the first place, just give up." He demanded.

"And give you Equestria? …We don't think so!" Luna declared.

She once again charged at the unicorn with great speed that could match up with the Wonderbolts, throwing hoof after hoof and kick after kick towards Dark Fire. He dodged and blocked every attack until he countered with an attack of his own. Luna reacted by smashing her hoof against his, causing both of them to fly back ten feet from the explosion of power.

"You disappoint me Luna… all those attacks and not one of them hit." Dark Fire mocked until he noticed a bit of blood trail down his cheek. "THAT'S IT, I'M DONE FOOLING AROUND, PREPARE TO PERISH!"

The entire room started to glow red as it heated up from Dark Fire's anger. His hair burst into an even brighter tint of red before completely being engulfed in flames. Luna spared no time as she opened a portal next to her and Dark Fire and leaped in to buck him in the face. Dark Fire then grabbed Luna's hind-hooves and tossed her into the wall. Seeing this done before, Luna leaped over Dark Fire before he struck the wall where she used to be, putting cracks into it. Luna then attempted to use Dark Fire's finishing technique on him to pin him to the wall, however, Dark Fire swayed left as she knocked down the wall behind him.

He then delivered a side tornado kick to Luna's chest cavity while she was on her hind-legs that made her skid back to the center of the room. Dark Fire then let out a blood-thirsty roar as he hurled a large, dark red energy ball at Luna. She stood her ground as she smashed her hooves into the ball, split the ball in two, and deflected them away from her and the others. Dark Fire then teleported into the distracted Alicorn and kneed her in the face. He then went for another punch with his right hoof, but was blocked by Luna's punch into his hoof with her right hoof. Dark Fire then tried with his left hoof; however Luna did the same, resulting in their hooves crossed in an "X."

Celestia could do nothing but watch the power struggle unfold before her eyes. On Luna's side of the room it was dark blue, but on Dark Fire's side, the room was bright red. Continuing the power struggle, the floor beneath them started to cave inward, forming a crater. After two minutes, both Dark Fire and Luna fired beams of magic into each other's horn, causing an even bigger light show to form.

"THIS IS THE END FOR YOU LUNA! I CAN FEEL YOUR POWER SLIPPING!" Dark Fire declared, making his last push.

"What are you trying to get out of all of this?" Luna asked, losing strength.

"Revenge… FOR WHAT YOU DID TO ME ALL THOSE YEARS AGO!"

Dark Fire then charged up to maximum power and launched Luna across the room in a large explosion, winning the power struggle. He then approached the fallen princess until he was right over her.

"You know Luna, that it's not the Nightmare that makes the mare, but the mare that makes the Nightmare." Dark Fire said, with an evil smile.

"No… NO YOU CANT DO THIS!" Luna begged as he put his hoof on her chest.

"By my will and my command… YOU ARE FREED FROM YOUR BONDS!"

Dark Fire then enveloped Luna in a black aura before ripping out her alter ego that she kept hidden and thought was destroyed. Before them all was the nightmare herself… Nightmare Moon.

"What have you… done?" Luna whispered before joining the others in unconsciousness.

"WHO IS THE BEING THAT REALEASED ME FROM MY PRISON?!" Nightmare Moon boomed.

"I am Dark Fire… the prince of darkness! You now owe me your allegiance… like I had when I served under you."

"NO PONY COMMANDS… Night Shadow, is that you?" Nightmare Moon asked, shocked.

Dark Fire let out a huge sigh.

"It's Dark Fire now… I'm the quote-unquote evil third of Night Shadow." He said with pride.

Nightmare moon stood there in a confused state.

"It's because I'm black isn't it?" Dark Fire said annoyed.

"No no no, you just caught me off guard and-"

"Just do your everlasting night thing-a-ma-jig." Dark Fire said casually.

"Fine then… I will just be going now." She said before disappearing.

Celestia stood at the foot of her throne completely lost in sadness. As Dark Fire slowly walked up to her, a pink blur appeared in front of him.

"I WONT LET YOU HURT HER!" Cadance screamed, defending Celestia.

Dark Fire then pointed his hoof towards Cadence and formed an energy ball.

"Move… or perish in fire." Dark Fire threatened.

Cadance's response was standing on her hind-hooves and extending her hooves and wings to the left and right of her.

"Then do it!" She said courageously.

Dark Fire's ball of energy grew three times bigger as he stood on his hind-legs. He then placed his other hoof under the foreleg charging the ball. Celestia was able to glance into his eyes to see that he intended to do his worst.

"NO!" Celestia shouted, diverting all the attention to her. "I'm the one you want, leave Cadence out of this." She said as she teleported in the center of the room.

"So you've finally given up?" Dark Fire laughed as he powered down the ball. "Just one more thing…"

Dark Fire then side kicked Cadence across the face, flinging the alicorn into a nearby stone pillar which then collapsed on top of her.

"CADANCE!" Celestia screamed before a red aura enveloped her.

Celestia was then slammed into the ground by magic. As Dark Fire turned around, she noticed his horn glowing as he wore an almost depressing look.

"I never wanted to do this Celestia… but it's not like you gave me a choice." Dark Fire declared as his horn grew brighter.

Magical chains then grabbed on to each of Celestia's hooves, spreading each of them apart.

"Everypony has been given the gift of free will, you can't deny this!" Celestia said to him.

More chains then emerged from the ground and bounded Celestia to the ground abruptly.

"THEN WHY DO YOU TORTURE ME LIKE THIS!" Dark Fire shouted, with sadness in his tone. "My entire life was filled with agony and pain… and then you came and took everything I loved away from me! What do you have to gain from this…nothing… YOU GAIN NOTHING FROM IT! You have punished me so cruelly for just trying to find a reason to live, you take from me because you can, you don't care for me at all!"

"You're wrong Night Shadow, I love you more then you could possibly imagine!" Celestia said in a calming tone.

"LIES, ALL LIES!" Dark Fire shouted as he punched Celestia across the muzzle. "You hate me… that's why you took everything from me!"

"I sent you forward in time to allow you to escape the nightmare that was haunting you."

"SHUTUP!" He shouted as he smashed Celestia harder into the ground. "YOU HAVE DONE NOTHING BUT RUIN MY LIFE WITH YOUR JUDGMENTS!"

"You were destroying and endangering everypony in Equestria, what choice did you give me?"

"What choice did I give you? WHAT CHOICE DID YOU GIVE ME!?" He yelled, bruising Celestia's side with his hind hoof. "TWICE HAVE YOU TOOK MY LIFE AWAY FROM ME, TWICE HAVE YOU TAKEN MY FRIENDS AWAY! …And now thrice that you have taken my loved one away from me."

"It is your fault that-"

"I HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF YOUR TALKING… IT'S TIME FOR YOU TO FEEL MY PAIN! IT'S TIME FOR YOU TO SEE EVERYTHING TAKEN FROM YOU AGAINST YOUR OWN WILL, AGAINST YOUR OWN WISHES! TO SEE ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS, FAMILY, KINGDOM, AND LOVED ONES PASS AWAY BEFORE YOUR OWN EYES!"

The room grew silent as a shadow of a unicorn entered from the main door of the throne room.

"Night Shadow?" Twilight asked, with tears in her eyes.

"RUN TWILI-!"

Dark Fire cut off the princess by electrocuting her with magic that caused her to revel in agony.

"Well if it isn't Twilight Sparkle, the one who freed me in the first place… you just couldn't wait your turn?" Dark Fire snickered.

"Night Shadow… please… I'm sorry. I didn't mean those things I said… please come back to me… I love you."

Dark Fire halted his movements as he let those very words, "I love you," flow through his mind.

"Night Shadow is dead because of you…AND SO ARE YOU!"

Dark Fire then shot a gust of wind that launched Twilight out of the window behind her, where a 2,000 foot drop waited.

"TWILIIIGGGHHHHHT!" Celestia shouted, completely in tears.

"HOW DOES IT FEEL CELESTIA… TO HAVE YOUR LOVED ONES TAKEN AWAY FROM YOU JUST LIKE YOU'VE TAKEN AWAY MINE! YOU ARE HEARBY BANISHED TO THE SUN WHERE YOU SHALL SUFFER FOREVER!"

Celestia then vanished out of thin air, leaving Dark Fire the only one standing in the room.

"I have won! I HAVE FINALLY WON!" Dark Fire shouted happily before sitting down on the throne. "Now Equestria shall be truly… free."

As Twilight continues to fall, she couldn't help but think that everything was her fault. Even though she was warned of the coming tragedy… she did nothing to prevent it. Thus she accepted her fate. Her entire life flashed before her, from her childhood, to her acceptance as Celestia's student, and her friends in Ponyville, she remembered it all as she continued to let tears fall. Just before impacting the ground, a dark figure landed in the spot she would crash, and caught her in the nick of time. Twilight was already unconscious by the time the figure recovered.

"Your journey does not end here Twilight Sparkle… you still have much to do." It said before vanishing into the shadows.

_**(p.s I'm thinking of putting this fanfic on Fimfic, but the critics there are a bit…overzealous. As in they will give me a hard time for the alicorn oc's and other stuff. Please support it if I put it up, or give me a comment. Thank you.)**_


	10. Chapter 9

**_(_****_Author's notes_****_: Because I came up with this fanfic around the date of February 2012, I had to add concepts to it as season 2 aired on. However, it has reached its capacity, thus only the first two episodes of season 3 apply to this fic. To give you a time line as to how it applies to canon, this takes place one month after the Crystal Empire. Why did I stop it there? Well, you'll find out.)_**

Chapter 9: Establishing Power

Dark Fire sat in the completely trashed throne room, completely bored until Nightmare Moon returned. She had a look of pride and happiness on her face.

"What are you so happy about?" He asked as the painting behind him fell.

"Let's just say the sun will never rise again!" She commented.

"Well now that that's done, we get the exciting job of clean up duty." Dark Fire said sarcastically. "So I think you-"

"Thou is man if thy thinks we are going to do it." Nightmare Moon stated.

"Oh come on… I just took over this entire castle, give me a break!" Dark Fire shouted.

"Get somepony else to do it then."

Both of them went silent.

"That does remind me of something." Dark Fire recalled "Nightmare, retrieve Cadance from the rubble!"

She, without caring, used her magic to yank Cadence from the rubble. Meanwhile, Dark Fire lined up Luna's, Shining's, and Black Blade's unconscious bodies in a row. He then placed Cadance next to Luna.

"That's what I thought…"

"What is thy blabbering about?" Nightmare Moon demanded.

"When I fought every blasted pony in this castle, I infected them with a small dosage of pure hatred. Only those of royal blood are immune to it even if I tried to corrupt them… however there are exceptions to this rule." Dark Fire said, pointing to Black Blade. "He's one of those exceptions."

"What does thy imply from this?" Nightmare asked.

"That they have been through so much in their life that they have a natural form of hatred in their heart. Something I intend to use to my advantage."

"What shall we do while we wait?" She asked bored.

"Wake up all the guards, they will serve you loyally and without question. After that, keep an eye on these four." Dark Fire ordered.

"Fine, we shall awake the slaves from their slumber."

"Good, I will be back... I need to awake an old friend." Dark Fire stated before vanishing.

As soon as Dark Fire left, Nightmare Moon instantly sat down on the floor and pouted.

"We have Equestria in our hooves… and yet it's so boring."

* * *

In the castle's outer courtyard.

"It's been so long since I've seen you… I wonder what's changed?" Dark Fire asked as he walked through what used to be Celestia's garden.

As the rain turned into snow, the search continued. Passing by statue after statue of practically every creature imaginable, and even some pony war heroes, he finally found it.

"Such a cruel fate you have… to be locked in stone for eternity without a trial or second chance." Dark Fire whispered in sadness.

He then swiped his hoof in the air, causing all the snow and ice to fall off of the statue to show a stone draconequus.

"No more will I watch others suffer from the side lines… DISCORD, MY DEBT HAS NOW BEEN REPAID!" Dark Fire shouted as he shot red magic into the statue.

The statue glowed bright red as it slowly shattered into pieces. Eventually, it exploded in a bright flash of light.

"WWWWOOOOOOWWWW! Being in a stone can give you such a crick in the neck!" Discord shouted as he literally removed his head and spun it around 360 degrees before reattaching it back onto his shoulders.

Dark Fire was entirely confused by what he just witnessed. Shaking it off, he coughed extremely loudly.

"Who's there?" Discord said as he summoned a candy cane sword.

"You don't recognize me after all these years? You really are getting old."

"Night Shadow?" Discord asked in complete surprise.

"Its Dark Fire now and I have freed-"

"Night Shadow I missed you so much!" Discord said joyfully as he hugged Dark Fire and nearly popped his eyes out.

"B-but my n-name is…"

Discord then stopped suffocating Dark Fire and put him on his shoulder.

"I thought they locked you up for life or turned you into a coat hanger." He said, giving him a random chocolate bar.

"Nope, I'm still breathing, and how thoughtful of you." Dark Fire said in a little colt voice before eating the chocolate.

"So how's my favorite apprentice doing?" Discord asked as he rubbed Dark Fire's mane.

"But… I was your only apprentice, Discord." He said a bit confused.

"That's why you're my favorite, so what have you been up to?" Discord asked again.

"Oh nothing much… just took over Equestria and stuff." Dark Fire said casually.

"Regained the throne I see, well shall we begin our reign of chaos?" He asked, excited.

"Not just yet… I believe you're forgetting somepony." Dark Fire said, pointing to a statue of a mare.

"Oh yeah, how could I forget about her." Discord said, mentally face palming.

"Like I said… you're getting old." Dark Fire teased.

The draconequus then snapped his fingers as the statue shattered before them. Inside was a mare with an ashy purple coat, scrunched ocean blue mane and tail with a red strip in the middle of both, and a falling star for a cutie mark. When she opened her crimson eyes, she shouted some choice words that shall not be repeated in this fan fiction.

"AND YOU CAN TAKE YOUR HORN AND SHOVE IT UP YOUR-!"

"Stardancer calm down, your free now!" Dark Fire said, attempting to calm her down.

"Huh… what?" She said, getting out of her rant. "Hey Discord… It's time for my payment and you're overdue by 5,000 years. I want bits this time… not candy!"

Discord simply rolled his eyes as a bag of bits landed in front of her. Dark Fire then leaped off of Discord to land in front of her.

"And hello Night Shadow." She said in a seducing tone as she searched through the bag.

"Knock it off Stardancer, I know we're just friends." Dark Fire stated.

"You're no fun." She pouted as she bent one of the bits in her mouth.

When she did that, she found out that it was chocolate and wrapped up to look like bits, thus getting a chocolatey surprise.

"Do you think this is funny?!" Stardancer yelled to Discord, who in return gave her the troll face.

"Oh Stardancer, you haven't changed a bit." Dark Fire said as he hugged her tightly.

"Hey watch the wings! They're still stiff from being in stone." She said, pushing him off.

"Look, if you want payment you need to follow me, Discord can teleport us back." Dark Fire said, trotting back to him.

"But I don't have a twitter account." Stardancer said frustrated.

Dark Fire let out a deep sigh before they were teleported back to the throne room.

* * *

Back at the throne room.

"We would also like a drink that's as strong as possible." Nightmare Moon ordered to the servants.

"Would you like anything else princess?" The servant asked eagerly.

"Yes… LEAVE OUR PRESENCE!" She shouted as they scrambled off in fear.

When she had the room to herself, Discord and the other's reappeared.

"You're telling me that your name is now Dark Fire, and you took over the palace by yourself?" Stardancer asked.

"Yes, are you impressed?" Dark Fire asked proudly.

"No, not really." She said bluntly.

"Discord!" Nightmare Moon yelled.

"Luna!" Discord responded back.

They both then teleported into each other's face for a standoff.

"DISCORD!"

"LUNA!"

"Stardancer!" She shouted, stealing the attention.

A red aura then enveloped both Nightmare Moon and Discord and pulled them away from each other.

"Both of you stop it! Discord, this is Nightmare Moon or Nightmare for short. She's the "evil" side of Luna, so she's on our team." Dark Fire said, introducing them. "And Nightmare, I'm pretty sure you know who Discord is… so be nice."

"Does thou realize what thy asks of us?" She complained.

"Stardancer and I are going to secure everything else… you two get to know each other better." Dark Fire ordered before grabbing Stardancer like a cardboard dummy and walking off.

A few moments passed in silence before Discord asked a question.

"Sooooo… do you like chocolate milk?"

* * *

After Dark Fire and Stardancer walked for about ten minutes, they reached their destination.

"So what do you say, you want a seat in power along with your friends?" Dark Fire offered.

"I could care less, just as long as I get paid." Stardancer pointed out.

Dark Fire only smiled as he extended his hoof to the left and fired an energy blast into the wall. Inside the wall was a huge room filled with all of the royal reserves of bits and countless gems.

"Work for me… and all of this and much more can be yours." Dark Fire declared, extending his hoof.

Stardancer was practically drooling at all the wealth she could obtain.

"As long as I'm paid, you have a deal." Stardancer said, shaking his hoof.

"Dark Fire!" A guard shouted from across the hall. "The citizens of Canterlot are in an uproar, they're threatening to start a revolution!"

"Soldier, secure the main doors… I will deal with these snobs." Dark Fire said sinisterly as he vanished from the room.

* * *

Back in the throne room.

"You have any three's?" Discord asked Nightmare.

"Nope… does thou have any five's?" She asked back.

"You asked that already." Discord replied.

Dark Fire then appeared in the room in an explosion of fire.

"Discord, I need you to fix up the castle with your magic, Nightmare I need you…to… ARE YOU TWO PLAYING GO-FISH!" Dark Fire screamed.

"Does thou have a problem with it?" Nightmare asked, annoyed.

"I love Go-fish… aside from that, Nightmare, I need you to send a group of guards to retrieve Twilight's body. I will explain later, but first I need to stop an angry herd of snobs."

"They will not be guards though." Nightmare commented.

"Anything will do. She fell out of that window, I will be back later." Dark Fire said before teleporting.

"Excuse me Discord." Nightmare said, clearing her throat.

She then shouted in a language that created the sound of thunder outside. Five Pegasi then emerged from the shadows of the room.

"What is your bidding princess?" The leader of the group asked.

"Shadow Bolts, go out and find the one named Twilight Sparkle, and bring her to us!" She commanded in a booming tone.

"It will be done, princess." The leader of the pack declared before they flew out the window.

"So where were we?" She asked Discord, picking up her cards.

"I believe it's my turn." Discord responded.

"Ok, go ahead." She said confidently.

"Do you have three's, four's, seven's, and nine's?" He said with a grin.

Nightmare Moon then tossed her cards at Discord.

"Thou has looked at my cards! Thou is a cheater!"

* * *

Dark Fire reappeared on a balcony that overlooked a huge portion of land where the citizens of Canterlot gathered. The uproar of noise was mainly demands to what had happened in the past hours. Dark Fire then looked at a clock to determine that it was eight in the morning.

"Where are the princesses!?" One of the stallions said in the mix of the uproar.

"Why is the sun not raised!?" Another demanded.

"We can't live in these conditions!"

"We demand answers!"

"SILENCE!" Dark Fire boomed, causing everypony to quiet down. "For those of you who do not know of the news… your princesses are no more!" He announced.

A pandemonium of anger and fear spread over the crowd of ponies at the sentence, causing Dark Fire to boil in anger.

"ENOUGH! For centuries, the tyrants known as Celestia and Luna ruled over you with an iron hoof! Making you obey their rules without question, making you shiver at the sound of their name, making you cower in fear of their punishments! But no more… no more will you tremble at their sight, because you are now free from their influence and rule! No more shall you obey a monarchy without end, no more shall you feed a power hungry queen, NO MORE SHALL YOU LIVE LIKE SLAVES TO DICTATORS! It is time for change, a time for a new leader to take charge, under new rules. I will give you the freedoms you could only dream of before, and this can only happen under my democracy! What do you say ponies of Canterlot? You have been blind from the truth before, but now you will see what true freedom is! THROW DOWN YOUR SHACKLES EVERYPONY AND SEE THE WORLD FOR WHAT IT TRULY IS!"

Even after Dark Fire's speech, the citizens of Canterlot were still loyal to their old rulers. Thus they denied him in anger and rejected his promises.

"FOOLS! DO YOU NOT REALISE WHAT YOU'RE DENYING! IF I CAN'T MAKE YOU SEE THROUGH THE LIES YOUR LEADERS MADE YOU BELIEVE… THEN I WILL MAKE YOU!"

Dark Fire then extended his hoof forward, sending out a red, foggy wave of corruption and hatred that covered the crowd. As Dark Fire laughed maniacally, everypony's eye's flicked bright red before returning to normal. However, all of their coats lost brightness, turning them dark.

"You poor ponies… under such deception… but I will free you. I WILL FREE ALL OF YOU!"

Lightning surrounded the dark unicorn as a red bubble appeared around him. Making a high pitched charging sound, Dark Fire enlarged the bubble to great proportions as he stood on his hind hooves. He was then enveloped in a black shadowy aura as his eyes went pure white. He screamed at the top of his lungs, causing the ground to shake, then a massive energy wave around him enveloped Canterlot in seconds. Dark Fire was completely out of power after this move.

"And that *pant*, my fellow viewers *pant*, is how to take over a country." He said with pride before slipping into unconsciousness.

* * *

"Twilight wake up, they will be on us soon!" The dark figure said telekinetically to Twilight.

Twilight slowly opened her eyes when she awoke.

"Am I… you know?" Twilight said to the figure.

"You are very much alive Twilight, but we must get you to safety. Can you teleport to Ponyville?" The figure asked.

"WHAT THE HAY IS THAT!?" Twilight screamed, pointing to the ever-approaching red wave.

"Twilight, if that wave hits you, all of Equestria is doomed, now focus!" She yelled, telekinetically.

"THERE THEY ARE!" One of the Shadow Bolts shouted.

"Hurry Twilight!" The figure shouted.

Twilight quickly teleported them to the first place she could think of… the outskirts of Ponyville. The Shadow Bolts quickly gathered to the location they teleported from.

"Where did they go?" One of them asked.

"They teleported you idiot! Quick follow me, I can only guess where Twilight went." The leader said before they all vanished into the darkness.

As soon as Twilight and the dark figure appeared, they began to gallop at a ridiculously fast pace.

'What went wrong back there with him? Why did I have to snap at him? Will we be able to bring him back? Will I ever be able to apologise to him?' These were the thoughts that were going on in Twilight Sparkle's mind as her and a dark figure, about a few inches shorter than Luna, were galloping next each other on a road in Ponyville.

She would have thought of more questions if it wasn't for the energy blast that exploded five feet in front of her. It was shot from one of the dark pegasus guards that were chasing them. In response to this act, the dark figure leaped into the air as if it was flying and spun around so that its back was facing away from the guards. It used a blinding blast of light that caused them to crash into several buildings. Twilight's objective to reach her library could now be achieved without much trouble from the guards, but she still had to hurry and get her friends out of town before the faint red pulse engulfed it.

Twilight rushed through the door of her home, only to see that all of her friends were right where she had left them. She attempted to form words, but was forced to take oxygen into her lungs from the long gallop she had just recently done. Everypony looked at her surprised as she stood in the doorway inhaling air faster than a vacuum cleaner. It wasn't until Applejack spoke up causing the silence to break.

"What's the matter sugercube, did it not go well?" Applejack asked.

"Yeah, it looks as if you ran a marathon." Rainbow Dash commented.

Twilight, still out of breath, attempted to make movements with her forelegs to indicate the approaching danger, but was not successful in this hoof-gestured movement.

"Ooo, is this a game where we all act crazy and random?" Pinkie pie asked, bouncing up and down. "I play this game ALL the time!" She yelled happily.

Twilight was now even more frustrated and started to point out of the window frantically on the second floor. Luckily for her, Fluttershy was the only one that noticed this and trotted up the stairs, heading towards it.

"Look darling, just take a deep breath and tell us what happened." Rarity said in her fancy tone.

"There's *pant* no time *pant* we need to *pant* get out NOW!" Twilight yelled, startling her friends.

"Um girls, there's a b-b-big scary red light heading towards us." Fluttershy said in a frightened tone.

Rainbow Dash heard this and flew to the window only to confirm the worst as she saw the incoming light.

"She's right, and there's also a red ball of..." Rainbow stopped and gasped. "Fluttershy, GET DOWN!" She yelled.

The explosion sent both of them to the first floor unharmed but dazed. Spike was also sent down to the first floor, unfortunately he crashed into a table. The dark figure then ran into the room and slammed the door. In the light, it was now apparent that the dark figure was not only a female pony, but an alicorn. She then signaled to Twilight that it was time to go.

"Ok, everypony stay close to me." Twilight said as she used her magic to teleport her and her friends out of her home and into the Everfree forest.

After they emerged from the light, they started galloping through the forest. Twilight used her horn as a light source to guide them through the dark wilderness. They ran until they could not breathe anymore and until… they were lost.

However, the dark alicorn had other plans besides standing around. She lead the others into an unfamiliar cave not seen by any of the mane six before. The cave was unlike any other witnessed by pony eyes. It was lit up by enchanted torches and lights that went down a hallway similar to that of a royal palace. It came to an end that revealed two black doors about fifty feet tall and thirty feet wide. It was then that Rainbow Dash asked Twilight the question that was on everypony's mind.

"Are you sure we can trust her? I mean she's all mysterious and stuff!"

The alicorn turned around and rolled her eyes at the small comment of suspicion.

"Well, she kind of saved my life back in Canterlot." Twilight said, glancing at Rainbow Dash.

"Wait… she did what now!?" Rainbow Dash asked in a shocked tone.

"I will explain later, just trust me on this." Twilight said in a calm voice.

The alicorn then stood in front of the door, staring at it for a good five seconds before shouting. It was a language unknown to any of them except to the lavender mare. The door glowing with a purple light, as a response to the alicorn's command, opened. As the door opened slowly, Twilight explained to the others that the language the alicorn used was ancient dragon tongue, which was long forgotten by ponies centuries ago. It was a language that she always wanted to learn for herself.

The alicorn then signaled everypony to follow her into the doorway. Once they followed her inside, they noticed a pale gray field surrounding another dark alicorn who was sleeping inside. The female alicorn slowly trotted towards the barrier and then placed both of her hooves onto it. Her horn then started to glow and her hooves were suddenly filled with power as she started to break the barrier.

"Ok girls, now you can ask me questions." Twilight said in a relieved manner.

"Well for starters, what the hay is goin' on?" Applejack demanded.

"Yeah, like those explosions that go BOOM and the jerky Pegasi!" Pinkie said in a curious and hyperactive tone.

"And that big scary red light." Fluttershy said timidly.

"And more importantly," Rarity spoke up. "Those two over there." She said pointing her right hoof at the two alicorns.

"And what about Night Shadow?" Rainbow Dash added.

"Okay, okay, one at a time." Twilight said as if she was about to be overrun with hundreds of questions. "I guess I should start from the very beginning."

Twilight then began to recap what had happened and how this entire mess started in the first place. "Okay... it all started like this." Twilight said, regretting the things she was about to explain.

* * *

After however long it took you to get here later.

"And that's what happened." Twilight said, completely ashamed of herself.

"I liked how you talked about the parts you weren't there for." Pinkie said in a joyful tone.

"So you're tellin' me that when you got mad at Night Shadow, it was all just a big misunderstandin'?" Applejack asked.

"Yes, now he's calling himself Dark Fire and ruling Equestria!" Twilight said, dropping her gaze to the ground.

"The title, 'Prince of Darkness,' does sound cool." Rainbow admitted.

Everypony then gave Rainbow a disgusted look.

"What, I can't have my own opinion?"

"I never got to apologise to him… this is all my fault!" Twilight said as tears fell.

"It's not your fault Twilight." Fluttershy said, hugging her.

"Then whose fault is it?" Twilight said, crying into Fluttershy's shoulder.

Nopony knew how to respond to her comment. Nevertheless, it was then that the alicorn shattered the barrier around the other alicorn.

"You must forgive me for not talking this entire time, but I swore not to speak until my brother was freed from his prison." She said calmly.

"So you two are related, but then how come you look almost exactly like Princess Luna?" Twilight asked confused.

"It was a coincidence, and the fact that she adopted me centuries ago along with my brother. I guess I took on her features."

The alicorn then stood up to stretch his wings. Everypony, except the other alicorn, was a bit intimidated by the fact that he had wings and a tail that belonged to a dragon. His wings, along with his feathers and tail, were black and silver. He had the same eye, mane, tail, and coat color as his sister. In fact, they were twins. The only difference between him and her were the gray splotches on his fur instead of Luna's light blue ones and the cutie mark of a willow tree.

"Sister, I thought mother was supposed to free me from this prison." He said in a deep accent.

"She was… if it wasn't for the fact that she was taken prisoner."

"Taken by whom!?" He shouted, giving of a strong magical presence.

"Night Shadow." She responded.

"Night Shadow… I thought he was loyal to us." He said, dropping his guard.

"He was loyal to Nightmare Moon, not Luna."

There was a short pause between the two.

"Then I'm going to save mother." He said determined.

"Ummm, may I explain what's happened?" Twilight said nervous.

He stared at her in an aggressive manner before turning to his sister.

"Why have you brought strangers into this forbidden landmark?" He said aggressively.

"She and her five friends are the bearers of the Elements of Harmony, you should listen to them." She demanded.

He was taken aback by the statement.

"I'm sorry about that… as you can imagine, being in a prison for 1,000 years can make anypony cranky. My name is Enderpearl, and my sister's name is Endershine." He said, changing his tone.

"Is that a Minecraft reference?!" Pinkie shouted, hopping to and fro.

The two alicorns stared at her confused until Twilight regained their attention.

"Ok, Night Shadow has taken over Equestria, but he's now calling himself Dark Fire. I suspect that he's in Night Shadow's body."

"It's worse than I thought. I remember Nightmare Moon trying to control that form, it's practically impossible."

"That's another thing… Nightmare Moon has returned." Twilight declared.

Everypony gasped.

"What about Luna and Celestia?" Enderpearl said worried.

"Nightmare Moon was extracted from Princess Luna; they are now two separate beings. As for Princess Celestia… I don't know." Twilight said in a depressing tone.

Endershine nodded to her brother when he looked at her, giving him permission.

"I will try to explain as much as I can about ourselves. 1,000 years ago, my sister and I lived happily among the ponies of Equestria, but that's when Nightmare Moon appeared. Even though her promise of power and control was strong, my sister was able to resist it. I, on the other hoof, was not so lucky. I joined Nightmare Moon's rebellion not because I wanted to, but because I was mentally forced to.

When she found out that it worked on me, she tried her cruel trick on others. Night Shadow was one of them, and even though we were friends under the control of Nightmare, I could still see the pain of loss in his heart. He explained to me one day that he had voices in his head that pulled him in all sorts of different crazy paths in life. However, it was worse than that… his darker self was always pulling him away from anything good that could benefit his life. And Nightmare Moon wanted to control that power for herself.

He has three alter egos: his neutral self, which you all know, his evil self… no explanation necessary, and his good self that I think nopony has ever seen.

Fluttershy hid behind her mane, feeling special to be the only pony to even witness Night Shadow's good form.

"Aside from this, all of you should get some rest, you're going to need it." Enderpearl suggested.

"The cave is protected with an anti-magic barrier, the hatred wave that Dark Fire created can't penetrate it, so you have nothing to worry about."

Back in Canterlot.

"You ordered all the prisoners free…why?" The newly corrupted guard asked.

Dark Fire was sitting on the newly repaired throne. Thanks to Discord, there was no clean up duty involved.

"They were enemies of Celestia and Luna, so I offered them freedom if they joined my cause, and they became Shadow Guards." Dark Fire informed him.

"Is that the name for your new army?" Another guard asked.

"Yes… I will soon require all of Celestia's royal guards to dye themselves dark gray, Nightmare will decide if she will keep the color of her guard though."

"Lord Fire, we obtained a rebellious prisoner from sector zero." A guard announced, walking in.

"Good work soldier, bring him in." Dark Fire ordered.

"Well that's just it sir, we can't tell, it keeps changing." The guard said a bit nervous.

"Nothing to worry about, just bring it in."

Not too long afterward, two guards brought in a green pegasus with royal clothing.

"Untie me this instant… I am royalty and I demand you let me go!" The pegasus ordered.

"Guards, leave us." Dark Fire said calmly.

As the guards let the throne room, silence fell on the two of them.

"You can drop the act now… you're not fooling me."

"Who are you, I don't remember you!" The pegasus demanded.

"I am Dark Fire; I have said this name so many times that it must bore people now. I am the new ruler of Equestria, so now tell me who you are." He said kindly.

"I am a queen of a far away land and I demand you to release me!" She said angrily.

"Is that so… changeling." Dark Fire smirked.

He then placed his hoof under the Pegasus's chin and removed the disguise that she had on with his magic. He then bound the changeling with magic so she couldn't escape.

"My my… what wonderful cheese legs you have my changeling queen." He ridiculed as he circled her.

"What do you want, royal trash!" She said, angrily.

"Your loyalty and army, I know how changelings work, you feed off of love to survive. Me and my friends will give you just that… if you deny, you will find that all of Equestria is under my influence of hatred. Hate is the opposite of love changeling; you won't stand a chance out there on your own if you reject this offer. Think about it, your kingdom would be reestablished to its full glory with you being their queen, and all it takes is one hoofshake." Dark Fire said extending his hoof.

"What makes me think that you won't betray me?" She asked, doubtfully.

"Please changeling… if I wanted you destroyed, we wouldn't be talking." Dark Fire said, keeping his hoof in the air. "You have ten seconds to decide your fate…"

"Okay, okay I accept." She said shaking his hoof.

"So what is your name changeling?"

"Chrysallis… why?" She asked a bit worried.

"Just for introduction…" He wrote on a letter before it vanished.

Instantly confetti from absolutely nowhere shot in all directions, nearly giving Chrysallis a heart attack. When things couldn't get any louder, a crowd of stallions came in and put a leash around her neck and carried her off into the break room.

"Have fun my little changeling!" Dark Fire waved. "You'll get to party later Dark Fire… you just need to revive one more ally."

In an underground room in the castle.

"Apparently you were once king of an empire." Dark Fire said as he filtered more magic into a crystal. "But like all of us… you were defeated by the tyrants."

Dark Fire stood in a circular room that had an inner circle for summoning creatures from other worlds. In the summoning circle was a huge illuminated symbol that stood for whatever was to be summoned. It could be changed with a switch next to Dark Fire. He then conjured a book with magic.

"To summon a being from the shadow realm, you must first apply the symbol of shadows into the summoning table." Dark Fire read aloud.

He then shot a beam of magic into the switch, causing it to change symbols.

"Then, implement the creature you wish to summon."

He once again shot magic into the switch.

"Then summon the being using the language blah blah blah I get it!" He said tossing the book.

Dark Fire then stood at the foot of the summoning circle and placed his hooves in the desired spots in the floor.

"AB UMBRA EST SCRIPTOR TE DISCEDENTE HUIUS MUNDI, UMBRA EST SCRIPTOR REUERTERIS! REDIRE AS VITAM CUM REGNO VESTRO MORTALI CORPORE ET ANIMA AD NOVUM REGEM UOBIS!"

A lightning bolt then striked the summoning table, filling the room with black smoke. When it cleared, it revealed a heavily armored unicorn with a red cape.

"It's time to wake up Sombra… you've slept for quite long enough."

"It's King Sombra to you." He stated angrily.

"Don't make me laugh… your kingdom fell and you still call yourself a ruler." Dark Fire mocked.

Sombra then tried to grab Dark Fire by the throat, but ended up crashing into a table.

"I give you your physical body back and the ability to use words other than, 'slaves' and this is how you thank me? No wonder your performance was horrible in season three."

Sombra, having enough of it, appeared in front of Dark Fire only to get roundhouse kicked across the muzzle, sliding across the summoning table. Dark Fire then applied his hoof onto the back of his head.

"Watch your words carefully, Sombra, for I brought you back into this world and I can easily rip you out of it again. This would have been a lot easier if you were more willing to listen, but now I'm going to demand from you. You will obey my every command and give me your loyalty or be forced back into the shadow realm. In exchange, you will be given back your crystal empire and treated like royalty in Equestria. In my opinion it's a win win situation, so I would take it before I change my mind!" Dark Fire demanded.

Giving Sombra no other choice, he accepted his offer… forming an ever-growing alliance of evil to rule Equestra forever.

_**(One last thing: Stardancer belongs to one of my best friends, thus, she is not mine. Thank you.)**_

_**(Edit: Forgot to mention, Enderpearl and Endershine belong to another friend.)**_


	11. Chapter 10 A

**_(So, to your benefit... or hindrance, I have split up the chapters into subsections because they were getting so long. This is so I can keep my promise of one chapter a week. For those that didn't see it before, Enderpearl and Endershine belong to another friend. I think I've said enough as it is.)_**

Chapter 10 A: A New Kind of Harmony

"Forming an alliance with all of Celestia's enemies was much easier to do than I thought, once I've convinced them to join us that is. This is day two of my glorious democracy, and I'm writing in this journal to inform those in the future of how to overthrow an empire when the time comes. 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend.', a good example. 'Find all that oppose your government and force them into one group', 'Remember, you're stronger as a whole than as a separate unit, it's how your voice is heard.' It's funny though… I have everything I could ever want but there is still this emptiness in my heart that cries out to be filled. I have tried to research what it is but to no avail. I have no reason to believe that it's…love."

Dark Fire sat at a table in what used to be Celestia's chambers writing in a journal; of course he had it redecorated as soon as he found it. This is where he would be spending his free time, away from any noise or distractions, or so he thought.

"Are you writing in a diary?" Stardancer asked, hanging from the ceiling.

"I would ask how you got in here, but then I wouldn't be surprised if you told me. Do you have anything to report?" Dark Fire asked, not looking up from his journal.

"Sombra said something about a war meeting, do know anything about that?" She asked, swinging on a chandelier.

"Yes the war meeting. It's hard to tell time without the sun anymore. Stardancer, get down from there!" He said as he opened the door.

As he walked out, the chandelier collapsed behind him. Dark Fire then gave her a glare.

"I got down at least…" She said, rubbing the back of her head.

"Mares." He whispered to himself before leaving the room.

"So can I listen to this meeting?" She said, catching up to him.

"If you want to listen to a bunch of ponies bicker about things you wouldn't be interested in, then fine." Dark Fire said sarcastically.

"It's so boring around here though. I want something to do."

"Soon Stardancer, soon, now wait out here like a good girl." He said, closing the door behind him.

He then appeared in a large hallway with a long red carpet that led throughout the room to where the others would be. When the guards noticed him, they rapidly ran to the closest side of carpet and saluted him as he walked past. Reaching the other end of the hallway, he turned to face the guards he just passed.

"At ease stallions… you may now take the day off." He said before disappearing behind a door.

All the guards looked at each other confused before one of them threw his helmet in the air and shouted joyfully. The rest of them simply followed the leader.

* * *

At the meeting.

"As you may know, the hatred wave was able to reach the outskirts of Ponyville but nothing past that, which means that not all of Equestria is under my control."

Dark Fire stood next to a map of Equestria as he pointed out land control with a stick, while Nightmare Moon, Discord, Chrysallis, and Sombra watched from a distance.

"What do you suppose we do then?" Sombra asked.

"We take every single city, one… by…one." Dark Fire said evilly.

"Does thy realize that we have no army? How does thy suppose we get one?" Nightmare demanded.

"The guards will make a good start, but they will soon be trained to be soldiers along with every new recruit."

"Knowing the snobs in this city, nopony would willingly sign up to be in the military, even under mind control." Chrysallis pointed out. "Plus my swarm still needs to recover their strength and numbers."

"I am aware of both of these facts, but then it came to me. I remember back when I was still under Discord's care that he mentioned something about elements that were opposed to harmony. Elements that would work for us instead of against us to bring Equestria to its knees, supposedly they are called, 'The Elements of Disharmony', or 'The Elements of Chaos.'"

"But they require ponies with strong mental strength and will, not to mention special talents and abilities unlike anypony before them. Where are you going to find anything like that in Canterlot?" Discord asked, drinking some chocolate milk.

"I have one in mind… but I was hoping that one of you knew of a potential candidate." Dark Fire said, disappointed.

"I used to know one that fit this category, but I don't know where that pony is anymore." Sombra stated.

"We know of one, follow us back to the throne room." Nightmare said, making her way out of the door.

"This meeting is now over. Do as you please, but try to find other potential ponies." Dark Fire said before following Nightmare out.

An explosion then occurred just as they walked out of the room. Chrysallis and Sombra rapidly turned around to see milk splashed eveywhere. Discord stared at them innocently.

"Don't blame me… it's not my fault you can't drink chocolate milk properly."

* * *

In the throne room.

"Ok Nightmare, the stage is yours." Dark Fire said with a smile.

Nightmare then summoned her Shadowbolts into the room through dark magic.

"What is it that you require princess?" The lead Shadowbolt asked.

"Tell us why we selected thou to lead the Shadowbolts." Nightmare demanded.

"Because I am the fastest male stallion in Equestria, princess, or at least that's what you said." He said with respect.

"Good, the others can leave and enjoy themselves. We require thou to stay here and answer Dark Fire's questions." She ordered.

The rest of the Shadowbolts left, leaving the other three behind.

"For starters, you can remove your uniform. You don't need to be formal for me." Dark Fire said kindly.

The Pegasus had a worried and confused look about him, but he soon removed his Shadowbolt uniform. He had a dark orange coat with a long gold colored mane that looked like it was blow dried backwards and stayed that way. His tail was the same color as his mane, only shorter with six spikes on the end. He also had bright green eyes and a red hurricane with a white center as a cutie mark.

"You can also relax pegasus, I'm not here to hurt you." He said to calm him down.

He then took a deep breath and awaited more commands.

"What is your name?" Dark Fire asked, writing on a piece of paper with magic.

"Lightning Flash, sir." He stated with newfound confidence.

"Is that a title or your actual name?"

"It is my name, but it's like a title to me." Lightning said, applying his hoof to his chest.

"So you take pride in your name?"

"Oh of course, I'm the best there is, there's no stallion faster than me." He said with pride.

"You say you're the fastest stallion… do you know the fastest mare?" Dark Fire said with a smirk.

"That would be my stupid but daring sister, Lightning Dust." He said almost shamefully.

"Really now… I used to know a mare that claims she's the fastest in all of Equestria. Care to prove me wrong."

"Sir with all due respect, our family is named after the fastest thing on this planet besides light!" He yelled.

"Well her name is Rainbow Dash and she-"

"RAINBOW DASH?!" He shouted with rage. "That stupid mare is the reason I was shunned from Cloudsdale and kicked out of the Wonderbolts training, she is the reason why my sister came crawling back to me in shame, SHE IS THE REASON WHY MY LIFE IS RUINED!"

Lightning Flash became so enraged that his veins could be seen popping out of his fur. Nightmare was about to intervene if it wasn't for Dark Fire's hoof stopping her.

"AND WHEN I FIND HER… I'LL… I'LL!"

Lightning Flashe's wings unfurled as they started to glow brightly, then from seemingly nowhere, lightning bolts struck both his wings. To Nightmare it was an over-the-top display of brightness, but to Dark Fire it was a demonstration of abilities. Dark Fire then conjured an image of Rainbow Dash in the enraged Pegasus's head, making him think a nearby barrel was Rainbow. Lightning then stood on his hind-hooves, slammed his fore-hooves together, and with an ear-piercing scream, fired the lightning bolt built inside him at the box.

"You can control weather I see… well I've seen enough. Lightning Flash, your new name shall be Ammisive, the bearer of the Element of Rage. Wear this title with pride and honor."

"Wait… WHAT?!" Lightning said shocked.

Just then, dark energy erupted from underneath him, causing his mane, tail, and fur to shoot upwards from the eruption. What surprised Lightning the most was that it didn't hurt, in fact, it felt good to him, and it fed him power. When the dark energy calmed down, a black necklace with his cutie mark formed around his neck.

"This newfound power that you have received not only makes you stronger, faster, and more agile, but also give you control of your weather abilities as well. If that's not O.P. then I don't know what is." Dark Fire said to him.

"So I have full control of the weather now... thank you for this gift lord Dark Fire." Ammisive said, giving thanks as he left the room.

"Now for my suggestion… GUARDS, BRING ME PRISONER SIXTY-EIGHT-FIFTY-FOUR!"

* * *

Twenty minutes later.

Ten guards dragged in the familiar dark purple stallion, Black Blade. He was bound by multiple chains and hoofcuffs that bonded his hooves and legs together. Dragging his hind-hooves across the floor, they finally reached the desired location.

"Nightmare Moon… escort the guards out, you may leave as well." Dark Fire ordered.

As soon as the guards entered, they left, taking Nightmare with them. Dark Fire then magically unlocked Black Blade's chains and cuffs, resulting in a huge crash of metal and chains to land on the floor.

"Tell me, are the slaves enjoying their new home?" Dark Fire asked in a mocking tone.

Black Blade made no response as he lay on the floor.

"Ah, the strong silent type, I will soon break you of that." He declared.

Still no response and Dark Fire was getting impatient.

"When I first saw you Black Blade, I knew there was something special about you, something that separated you from all of the others." He complimented, trying to get a response.

Sill no answer from the silent stallion.

"WHY DO YOU NOT SPEAK?!" Dark Fire shouted as fire exploded from his mane.

The stallion continued to lay there in silence. Dark Fire then raised a hoof and was about to smack him across the muzzle, but then held back, putting his hoof back on the floor.

"I do not wish to hurt you, but you are leaving me no choice. I don't know if I should be impressed or annoyed that you resisted the hatred spell." He stated aggravated. "I'm starting to wish that you were."

The stallion then looked down to avoid eye contact with the dark unicorn.

"LOOK AT ME WHEN I TALK TO YOU!" Dark Fire screamed.

"As you wish." Black Blade said as he stood up abruptly and stared into Dark Fire's eyes.

As Dark Fire looked into his eyes, he could see nothing but the black void that enveloped them. Only then did he realize what he was doing.

"NOW CRINGE IN FEAR… TERROR CANNON!" Black Blade shouted.

Black Blade had the most insane facial expression the Dark fire had ever seen. As he laughed maniacally, a dark black and purple void appeared behind him that covered the entire room. Ten seconds later the void vanished without a trace.

"The fear must have gotten to your head Dark Fire!" He said evilly. "BEG FOR MERCY YOU PATHETIC WELP OF A PONY!"

Dark Fire couldn't help but laugh evilly at his attempt to control him with fear. If there was one thing that he was used to resisting, it was fear.

"What… no… IMPOSSIBLE! NOPONY BUT PRINCESS LUNA HAS BEEN ABLE TO RESIST THAT KIND OF AMOUNT OF FEAR!" Black Blade said, experiencing horror overcoming him as he backed away.

"As you can see… I'm not Luna." Dark Fire whispered as he approached him.

"Leave me alone… LEAVE ME ALONE!" Black Blade screamed in terror as he hit the ground and covered his head with his hooves.

"You hide behind your strength as if it was a wall of protection. You use it to intimidate others to hide from your own fear in life. But I can see right through you, your heart aches from loss and pain from those that hurt you. Your mind cries out for answers to questions that you alone can't solve. The only difference is that you don't want to admit it. You run from those that want to help you, but I am here to change that, I AM HERE… TO SET YOU FREE!"

"I'll do what you ask... just as long as you-"

"Submit to me." Dark Fire whispered.

Black Blades experience was exactly like Amisive's as dark energy erupted from underneath him. When it dissipated, a necklace similar to Amisive's formed, only this time, it had his cutie mark on it.

"Your shall now be known as Stritin, the strongest stallion in all of Equestria and the bearer of the Element of Fear. Now, retrieve Amisive… we have some elements to find." Dark Fire commanded.

"It will be done my lord." Stritin said without question.

* * *

"Thou is not going out into Canterlot like that, is thy?" Nightmare said laughing.

Dark Fire stood in front of a mirror with his mane in all sorts of places. Almost the result of bed hair times twenty.

"Since when did you care Nightmare, you're not exactly a fashion pony to me." He said, pushing his mane off of his eyes.

"The ponies of Canterlot think you're a prince, Dark Fire, at least wear something to show your position." Sombra suggested.

"I'm like the only black pony in this city, how can they not know who I am?" Dark Fire asked.

"At least use a hair brush." Nightmare pleaded.

"A hair what?" Dark Fire asked dumfounded.

"UGH… DISCORD!" Nightmare moon yelled.

Instantly, Discord appeared in the room wearing sunglasses and a tye-dye shirt while roasting some ice cubes over a bucket of pudding. Everypony looked at him confused.

"Why are you all looking at me like I've never done something like this before?" Discord asked, removing his sunglasses.

"It's the middle of winter Discord, why would you… never mind." Sombra said, losing interest.

"Fix him up Discord." Nightmare demanded.

"Not with that attitude I won't." Discord said, crossing his arms.

"Can thy fix him up or not?!" She asked, losing patience.

"I don't know… can I?" He responded, smirking.

Dark Fire and Sombra were cracking up at how frustrated Nightmare was getting. She on the other hoof wouldn't take it.

"WE WILL PUT THOU IN A CANDY CANE PILLAR IF THOU DOES NOT LISTEN TO US!" She threatened.

"Ooo, is that a threat or a treat?" Discord teased.

Nightmare was at her breaking point until she took a deep breath to calm herself down.

"M-m-may thy p-please fix Dark Fire up to go out?" Nightmare struggled to say.

"See… was that so hard?" Discord said, patting Nightmare on the head before snapping his fingers.

Dark Fire's hair was then instantly straightened and cleaned. His coat also glowed as if buckets of gel were dumped onto him. Along with this, he was given a robe similar to an English king: a golden crown with multi-colored gems, golden shoes for his hooves, and four golden bracelets.

"Geeze narrator… did you say the word gold enough?!" Dark Fire shouted to the ceiling.

"Now thy is able to go." Nightmare said, chuckling.

Dark Fire gave her an angry look before he stormed out.

* * *

It didn't take long for Amisive, Stritin, and him to reach the main gate, but that wasn't the hard part. The hard part was the paparazzi and fans surrounding Dark Fire within seconds, flashing him with cameras.

"There he is!" One of the ponies shouted.

"So how does it feel to be prince of Equestria?" A newscaster asked.

"Do you have tons of bits?" A fan asked.

"How does it feel to be the first black prince?"

"Can I have your autograph?"

"CAN I BE YOUR MAREFRIEND!"

The sad part about that was… he was a stallion.

"BACK AWAY FROM THE PRINCE!" Stritin shouted, slamming his hooves down.

Everypony then ran off screaming from the scene faster then timberwolves seeing fire for the first time.

"THE PRINCE OF DARKNESS IS NOT FRUITY!" He screamed to the retreating crowd.

"They seemed nice… underneath all of their arrogance." Amisive laughed.

"Whatever, we need to find another element anyways, not please the hoards." Dark Fire said as he made his way into town.

Stritin and Amisive looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders before catching up to him.

"Anypony in particular you're looking for?" Stritin asked him.

"Somepony that's at least resisted the hatred wave, like you two did." Dark Fire complimented. "When I find that, the next qualities will kick in."

Two hours later.

"You two. Anything to report?" Dark Fire asked, losing hope.

"Nothing." Amisive and Stritin said separately.

"Ok, well I guess we should take a break, it's hard to move with all of this metal and stuff." Dark Fire said. "How does Seventh Heaventh… wait is that a Final… where's Tifa?"

Amisive and Stritin looked at him confounded.

"Just… just follow me."

Inside the club bar thing… I don't know what it is, okay! It was my friend's idea!

"You two, go sit at that booth, I'm going to have look around. You may enjoy yourselves, but try not to overdo it."

The two stallions nodded before leaving him. The club was very dim and had multiple colored lights that flashed in every direction. Dark Fire looked around in every location in the club, but still no luck. Fortunately for him, everypony was either too tipsy or didn't even care about his presence. He eventually got access to a back room in the club, where the higher paying ponies could go. Everything was okay until a silver stallion jumped onto a table. He had a strange but large, purple, pokadotted hat with a red phoenix feather to the side of it. His tail was large and copper-colored with a golden stripe in the middle, along with a cutie mark of a royal flush in poker. The stallion also had a monocle and bright yellow eyes.

"Hey everypony look at me, look at me, look at me, LOOK at me! No don't look over there, there's nothing to look at over there, look at me, look at me, look at me!" The silver pony ranted. "Are you looking at me? Is everypony looking at me, do I have everypony's attention?! Don't get the wrong idea; I'm not trying to take over your life! What, what do you need, what do you need, you need to go get a drink? FINE, go get a drink, then come back here, and look at me! What, you need to go use the bathroom? OKAY THEN, get up, go to the bathroom, come back, and look at me. Do what you absolutely have to do, then come back, and look at me! Do we all have an agreement?!"

Everypony in the room was either confused, annoyed, or too drunk to care. Either way, he had everypony's attention, including Dark Fire's.

"Don't worry about your schedule. I am here for you, I am here for you. I am here for you every day, twenty-four hours, seven days a week, I am here for you! Ponies will try to tell you that I'm bad... well you know what I hear? Rotten hay. Just keep looking at me, I am unbelievable, I am unbelievable. You can't believe it because it's unbelievable! And all you have to do *pant* is look at me!" The silver stallion finally finished.

"*HICK*… then show us your 'unbelievable' talents!" One of the drunken mares mocked.

"Gladly…"

The stallion then levitated his hat off with a silver aura, revealing his unicorn horn and copper colored mane. His horn illuminated in a gray color as everypony in the room suddenly started to throw money and items towards him. Dark Fire knew that he casted a spell on the others to force them into "donating" their potations to the stallion. The stallion had just put on some gold shoes by the time Dark Fire reached him.

"Oh how kind, you're here to give me your potations." He said, putting loads of bits into his bag.

"Actually, I want to know how you pulled that trick off." Dark Fire said, already knowing the answer.

"I'm sorry… but I believe you were giving me your bits." The unicorn said, waving his hoof in front of his face.

"Yeah… that's not going to work on me." Dark Fire said bluntly.

"Well why don't you stare directly into my horn?" The unicorn said, flashing his horn brightly.

As the flash died down, Dark Fire was seen wearing some dark sunglasses.

"Are you going to tell me something stupid now? Like this is the reason you don't flush your filly's goldfish down the toilet." Dark Fire said, removing his sunglasses.

"Who are you again?" The stallion asked, as beads of sweat went down his muzzle.

"I'm that unicorn that took over Equestria. You know, nothing much." He said with sarcasm.

"Wait… Dark Fire?!" The unicorn said, worried.

He simply nodded his head with a sinister smile.

"OH, hahahahaha… hahaha… haha…ha… oh crap."

The unicorn then casted a huge smoke cloud as he made an escape.

"A SMOKE BOMB? REALLY?! THIS ISN'T ASSASSIN'S CREED!"

Dark Fire then chased after him, attempting to catch the silver trickster.


	12. Chapter 10 B

Chapter 10 B: The Not So Great and Powerful Apprentice

"You think you can get away that easy!?" Dark Fire shouted.

"I never said it would be easy." The silver stallion said with is back to the wall.

"I'm not trying to hurt you… yet. So just listen to me you annoying snob!" Dark fire said ticked off.

"Such harsh words, but no knowledge of how to use them." The unicorn scorned.

"Shut up!" Dark Fire replied back.

"Silly stallion, or should I say mare, do you even practice what you preach?" The unicorn said smirking.

"THAT'S IT, I'M GOING TO SNAP YOU LIKE A TOOTH PICK!" Dark Fire shouted angrily.

"Really, so how are you going to do that with hooves?" The stallion mocked.

Dark Fire's anger had gotten to the point where his mind was starting to fog up from all the rage.

"And that's how Silver Tongue wins!" He said before illuminating his horn brightly.

Dark Fires eye's suddenly started to glow silver as the spell took effect. It only lasted for a good five seconds before Dark Fire blasted him with his own magic.

"You almost infiltrated my mind. YOU ALMOST MIND-BUCKED ME!" Dark Fire said angrily as his eye's returned to normal.

Silver Tongue layed on the floor, dazed, as stars appeared over his head.

"That hurt you jerk!" Silver said, dusting himself off.

"I'm going to hurt you more than that if you keep this up!" Dark Fire yelled.

"Well what do you want from me, a cookie? Well that's not going to happen because Santa Hooves has just put you on his hit list!"

"I don't want your stupid cookies, I just need to talk to you!"

"You want my bits don't you? My fantastic, awesome, precious, golden, wonderful, little-"

"Do you ever shut-up?" Dark Fire said, covering his ears with his hooves.

"You wanted me talk… now you're shutting me up?" Silver asked, getting annoyed.

Dark Fire then tackled Silver Tongue through the wall… which wasn't very strong.

"You're coming with me." He said, picking him up by the ear, and dragging him away.

"Get your filthy hooves off of me!" Silver said, hitting Dark Fire in the ribs.

"Then try to get away because I'm not letting go, and you also hit like a mare." Dark Fire smirked.

"How dare you call me a mare you stupid laborer!" Silver yelled, continuing to hit him in the ribs.

Dark Fire continued to ignore his insults as he dragged him to the exit. Silver would have none of it though, he was too filled with pride for this, so he made himself intangible and ripped himself from Dark Fire's grip.

"What's the matter my lord, you can't capture what you can't see?" Silver said, vanishing from view.

Dark Fire shook his head disappointedly before lifting his left forehoof to the side and blasted the area with magic.

"STOP DOING THAT!" Silver said before getting punched across the muzzle.

He hit the wall so hard that it left an imprint of him on it.

"Y-you hit me… you… you…" He said before hitting the ground and fading into unconsciousness.

Dark Fire walked over to his body, almost relieved.

"When you awaken Silver Tongue, your name will be Castigate, the most impressive illusionist in Equestria and the Element of Slander… for obvious reasons." Dark Fire said as he waited for the dark eruption to dissipate around Silver and for the necklace to form.

When that was done, Castigate subconsciously started to fondle with the black necklace.

"What, no gold?" He whispered as he slept.

"Even when you sleep Castigate, you still don't shut up." Dark Fire said as he levitated the unicorn onto his back.

* * *

"Stritin, lay off the drinks. This is your tenth bottle of dandelion wine!" Ammisive said, trying to snatch the bottle from his hooves.

"I don't *HICK* know what yer talkin' about… *HICK!*" Stritin said as he patted Ammisive's back very hard, making him crash through the table.

"HEY! I'm going to have to ask you two to leave." The bartender said angrily behind the bar table.

"You can't… kick me out *HICK!* I'm captain of Nightmare's guard… *HICK* I have an army!" Stritin said as blood rushed to his head, making him blush.

He then tried to get up and walk out, but he ran into another tipsy pony.

"Watch where you're going bub." The pony said, drinking out of a bottle.

Stritin then grabbed the pony by his neck and held him in a choke hold.

"I DON'T HAVE YOUR BACON!" He shouted as he slammed him through a chair.

Ammisive finally got up from his smackdown to see Stritin getting surrounded by ten ponies with twenty more backing them up.

"Well… this won't be good." He said to himself.

"Ok everypony, if we could just calm down and line up in a single file to get my autograph, we will be out of here in no time."

Nopony listened to the pegasus as ten, drunken ponies tackled Stritin to the ground. Resulting in a bar fight breaking out.

"Or we could just beat the living hay out of you." Amisive said as he dodged a flying bottle and punched a pony across the muzzle.

Thirty-seven seconds later.

"Well... I hope you're happy." Ammisive said, picking Stritin off from the ground.

"I could have *HICK* taken them." He said, falling into unconsciousness.

Dark Fire then came through the back door to see thirty knocked out ponies laying all over the floor.

"Nice to see that you didn't overdo it." He said sarcastically.

"He started it!" Ammisive said, gesturing to Stritin. "It's not like you did any better."

"Actually... no, but I found your new element." Dark Fire said, smirking.

"It looks like he's…"

"Quiet, yeah I had to do that myself."

"Are you ponies going to pay for this?" The bartender said, hiding behind the counter.

"There's money in the back room, go get some for yourself." Dark Fire said, teleporting his friends out of the bar.

"So this is your room Ammisive. It's nothing much, so try to make the best of it."

The room was plated with gold along with some of the best furniture bits could buy. It had a fireplace, red rug, king sized bed, and many other things that would make anypony squeal.

"Nothing much?!" Ammisive asked, amazed. "I feel like royalty in this room!"

"Well good uh, night?" Dark Fire said awkwardly.

"Good night my lord." Ammisive said before Dark Fire closed the door.

Dark Fire stayed at the door and stared at it for a good while before walking off.

"Why does it still feel like something is missing?"

Two days later.

"Stritin, focus on your speed rather than your strength, what good is it if you can't hit anything?" Dark Fire said, dodging another punch.

"Stop moving then!" Stritin yelled angrily as he continued to throw punches.

"I'm not even trying right now. You're just too slow." Dark Fire said, blocking another attack.

"Then can I take a break? I need to breathe." Stritin said, plopping to the ground.

"Ok Stritin, but just watch how Ammisive does it."

"He's a Pegasus though. I can't keep up with that."

"It looks like the strong earth pony isn't as tough as he thought." Castigate said from the side lines.

Stritin then got up abruptly and looked directly at him.

"I don't see you practicing."

"I don't have to, I'm already better than you." He said as he drank out of a fancy bottle.

"You're joking right? You're joking."

"If I was joking I would say, 'Two unicorns walked into a bar, you would think they would have ducked.'"He said with a smirk.

"Then prove it loud mouth." Stritin said approaching him.

"Clean yourself off first… you smell like a sweaty horse."

Stritin then grabbed Castigate and wiped his sweat off with his coat before tossing him back down to the floor.

"You ignorant beast, do you realize how long it takes to get my coat to perfection?!"

"The better question is, should I care." Stritin said with a grin.

"Both of you knock it off. Castigate, he does have a point, you need to practice even if you don't want to." Dark Fire pointed out.

"But he ruined my coat!"

Dark Fire took a large breathe and exhaled loudly.

"Ammisive, can you demonstrate what you've learned by cleaning off his coat?" Dark Fire said to him.

Amisive was relaxing on a black storm cloud when he got the command. The problem wasn't that he was relaxing; it was that he brought a storm cloud inside the castle where they were training.

"Ok, one cooked unicorn coming up!" He said, stretching his hooves.

"I said clean, not cook!"

"Awww, but that's not fun." Ammisive said as he pouted.

"Just do it!" Dark Fire said losing patience.

Ammisive then leaped off of the cloud and pushed it above Castigate. Instead of stomping on the cloud, he manipulated the rain to fall on the prideful unicorn. Once enough rain fell, Ammisive stopped the rain fall, and evaporated the fallen water back into the cloud.

"That's pretty good Ammisive, but now you have to dry him off."

"I'm getting there, hold on." Ammisive said, tapping his chin with his hoof. "I got it!"

Ammisive then rapidly stood up on his hind-hooves and launched an air wave by flapping his wings. It did dry Castigate off, but it also flung him into a statue."

"You can never trust these statues Ammisive, good job." Dark Fire complimented.

"I… hate… all of you!" Castigate said, pushing the broken statue off of him.

When they all were about to leave, a large brown earth pony with a black cowboy hat and leather jacket entered the room. He had a spiky mane that had three points in the front and back. His tail was similar, but on the tips of the spikes was the color dark brown. He was also dragging Filthy Rich on the ground with his hoof. Behind him were two fillies, one pink and the other gray.

"What's the meaning of this?!" Dark Fire demanded.

"This contact known as Filthy Rich, has decided to evade his taxes for more than two months. I was hired by the princess herself to bring him here, so where is she?" The stallion said, looking up at him with his bright blue eyes.

"If you mean Celestia, she decided to take a thousand year vacation. If you mean Luna, she will remain behind bars where she belongs." Dark Fire said, laughing.

"You overthrew the princesses?! Are you insane?!" The brown stallion said showing some surprise.

"Do you have a problem with this?" Dark Fire said wickedly.

"Yeah I do, now who the hay is going to pay me now?"

"Shadow Hunter, what are you doing here?" Castigate said, approaching him.

"Don't pester me about your runaway mares Silver, I don't need another hit-and-bag assignment."

"Since when did you do contracts for that waste of space Shadow?" Stritin asked.

"Since I started working here, Black Blade, pretty much anyone with the right amount of bits can find me."

"So all of you know this guy?" Dark Fire asked confused.

"Yeah, he's like one of the best bounty hunters in all of Equestria." Stritin said respectfully.

"Actually, I am the best if you don't mind." Shadow Hunter said proudly.

"Is everypony like the best at something?!" Dark Fire said annoyed. "It's like every character is just O.P. in some form of fashion."

"Back to the real problem, where's my bits?" Shadow said darkly.

Everypony in the room slowly turned to Dark Fire.

"How much was it?" Dark Fire responded.

"Ten thousand bits. No less."

"And the fillies?"

"They tagged along, the pink one is Diamond Tiara and the other is Silver Spoon. They are of no use to me."

The pink filly then stepped out from behind Filthy Rich and approached Dark Fire cautiously.

"Please Lord Fire, don't take my daddy away from me."

"Why should I care what you-"

*DING*

"Why are you taking my dad away…WHY?!" A familiar red unicorn said to a blurred figure.

"He's a threat to you and every other blasted pony in this dimension! He's working for Celestia, Night Shadow, and everything that supports her must perish." The figure said as its eyes glowed.

"Everything that supports Celestia must perish." Night Shadow repeated.

Dark Fire shook his head furiously as he came back to reality.

"I will give you twenty-thousand to let him go and an extra ten if you stay and talk."

"As you wish."

The dark brown stallion then released his grip on Filthy Rich.

"GUARDS! Escort these ponies to the dining hall. I believe they need to be better acquainted with what we do here.

Several seconds passed when Shadow Hunter, Filthy, and the two fillies left the room.

"Lord Fire… your eyes… they're glowing purple." Ammisive said worried.

"WHAT!?" Dark Fire shouted, shaking his head more. 'That's not suppose to happen… I'm in complete control over that whelp.' He thought as his eyes returned to normal.

"Is something wrong?" Ammisive asked.

"No… nothing is wrong. You three can take a break, I will return to you later." Dark Fire said as he left the room.

At the Dining hall.

"I was going to pay the taxes later!" Filthy Rich declared.

"You were two months late, and your telling me that with all of those bits you still couldn't pay?!" The brown stallion remarked.

"My dad works really hard, so back off!" Diamond Tiara defended.

"Learn your place you spoiled brat, your father is free from his crimes anyways, so why don't you back off!"

"You need to back off!" Silver Spoon yelled.

"I don't need comments from the peanut gallery, so shut your muzzle!"

"I bet you're so mean because your mother never loved you."

Shadow Hunter then flipped the table out of pure anger, unsheathed his black hoofblade and pointed it directly at her throat.

"Don't you EVER say anything about my family again!" He said, losing control of himself.

"But it's true." Silver Spoon remarked.

Shadow Hunter then raised his hoof and was about to slash the filly in two if it wasn't for his hoof being restrained by magic.

"What the hay are you doing!" Dark Fire demanded.

"About to make this little bi-"

"No need for harsh words assassin, we are civilized ponies are we not?" Dark Fire said calmly.

Everypony in the room then let out a deep breath when Shadow Hunter retracted his blade.

"Now, Filthy Rich, we are going to have to work on your tax problem. Please stay here for the next few days along with your daughter. Shadow Hunter, you will stay here."

Filthy, along with the two fillies, were escorted out to their new room.

"Now Shadow Hunter, how would you like to be part of something bigger than yourself?" Dark Fire said, tossing him a large bag of bits.

"You would have to do a lot of convincing." Shadow said, looking through the bag.

"There is fifty grand in that bag. And there is more where that came from... if you accept that is."

"What, your Elements of Disharmony gang? No, I think I'll pass." Shadow Hunter said, making his way to the exit.

"Or you can just let the organization that ended your families live's continue to strive and gain power."

Shadow Hunter instantly froze up at the sentence.

"How do you know about the United Silhouette Clan?" Shadow whispered.

"I know many things Shadow, and I can help you get revenge for everything they have done."

"You have my attention." He said, turning around.

Shadow Hunter was later anointed the name Eccentric, the Element of Cruelty. With his newfound powers, he easily decimated the group and declared his loyalty to Dark Fire for the rest of his life. The story of this will be explained another time.

One week later.

"They will also need to be ponies of great potential and have a powerful mentality." Dark Fire listed off.

"You do realize that this will give you some unwanted attention?" Castigate said, writing down Dark Fires words on paper.

"What do you mean?"

"Let's just say that I've seen many boasters proclaim many things. They aren't worth your time." Castigate said before walking off with the papers.

Nightmare Moon then appeared in the room abruptly.

"Dark Fire, we are going shopping with Chrysallis, we will be back at nighttime."

"It's always nighttime though." Dark Fire pointed out.

"Oh… then we will be back at seven."

"Is that all?"

"Thou may also have a Windigo problem." She said before teleporting off.

Dark Fire sat completely annoyed by her last sentence.

"AMMISIVE, GET IN HERE!"

He came running in five seconds later.

"What do you want Lord Fire?" Ammisive said, bowing.

"Make the climate warmer, I will also-"

"I can't change the climate uhh… sir." Ammisive said, nervously.

"What do you mean you can't?!"

"Climate is different from weather. It's not in my jurisdiction."

"Ok then, I will do it." Dark Fire said, getting off of his thrown.

He then opened a window and casted a magic beam that penetrated the night sky. The falling snow was then converted into rain as it got warmer.

"That should last another two weeks before the Windigos freeze the atmosphere again."

Two guards then came through the main doors holding a dark purple mare pegasus. She had a red, straight mane and tail with a bright green stripe in the middle. She also had orange eyes and a rose with several diamonds as a cutie mark.

"Dark Fire, we found this mare trying to steal some very valuable items, what should we do with her?"

"Let me go you stallions! This is no way to treat a mare!" She said aggressively.

"Let her go and return to your guard positions." Dark Fire ordered.

He then walked over to the released mare.

"This is getting to be very repetitive." He said with a sigh. "Hi my name is Dark Fire, I'm assembling a group called the Elements of Disharmony, would you like to join blah blah blah?" He said extremely dully.

"Oh so the big strong pony wants me to join his little group… how cute." She said, circling Dark Fire like a cat.

"Seductiveness won't work on me, so don't try it." Dark Fire said menacingly.

Meanwhile, Ammisive was having trouble controlling his wings.

"Really, are you certain of that?" The mare said, rubbing Dark Fire's chin with her tail.

"Yeah, so get off of me." Dark Fire said bluntly.

"W-what… are you gay?" She asked, suppressed.

"What! Now hold on, lets not jump to conclusions-"

"Well my lord, you do show signs of being a colt cuddler" Ammisive said, rubbing his head.

"Just because I was betrayed by three mares and deny any of them who try to be my marefriend doesn't mean that I'm a colt cuddler!" Dark fire yelled to Ammisive.

There was a long silence as Dark Fire recovered his breath.

"So… are you gay?" The pegasus asked again.

Dark Fire was on the verge of slapping the mare if it wasn't for Sombra entering the room.

"Diamond Rose?!" He said in shock.

"Sombra?!" She replied.

They both teleported into each other's face and gave each other angry looks. It was broken when they both hugged each other.

"You're alive! After all these years." Sombra said happily.

"I should say the same for you." Diamond said joyfully.

"How the heck did she just teleport?!" Ammisive asked in confusion.

"I can use magic, duh." She responded in a sassy tone as she released Sombra from the hug.

"I personally trained her in the art of magic, even though she is a pegasus." Sombra said with pride.

"That is really impressive Sombra, you must have been like a father to Diamond." Dark Fire said, being happy for the two.

"Well of course he's like a father to me... because he is my father." She replied.

This time it was Dark Fire's turn to be confused.

"How, what, that dosen't…"

"When the crystal empire vanished, I was caught in the blast. So when it reappeared again, I was still the same age as when it disappeared. Only recently have I been outside of the kingdom." Diamond said to him.

"My daughter was the mare that I recommended back before you started your pursuit for the Elements. Can you still recruit her? She's an excellent thief and very skilled in magic."

"Yes of course, her name shall be Maneful, the bearer of the element of Malice and a quite beautiful mare I might add."

"So you're not gay then?"

Two weeks later in the throne room.

"We have five Elements and an army now. The invasion of the rest of Equestria will begin in two days minimum. Chrysallis's changelings have now recovered to full strength due to the amount of "love" they have been receiving from us and the citizens of Canterlot. Our first attack will be on the floating city of Cloudsdale, with Ammisive being the commander of the first Pegasus division. Let them fall under the might of the New Conflagration Confederacy."

Everypony cheered when Dark Fire finished his war plan, but then it happened. A huge explosion knocked down the throne room doors as a figure with black robes and hood walked in from the dissipating smoke.

"Where is Celestia?" It said with a fearsome voice.

Fifty guards then surrounded the figure in a semi-circular pattern.

"Celestia was defeated by me, I doubt you haven't heard the news." Dark Fire mocked.

"So you're the fool that defeated her. That was supposed to be my greatest triumph to prove her wrong. I guess you're the next best thing!"

"Guards, arrest this idiot." Stritin commanded.

The dark figure then threw off his robes and they combusted into flames, revealing a dark green unicorn with scars all over his face. He had dark purple eyes and a pure white mane and tail with a strange cutie mark nopony had ever seen before. It was a black diamond shape surrounded by a gray cube on its side within a purple circle. Outside of that was a black outline of a circle with six points around it. The cutie mark also had ash marks, two specs to the right, left, top, and bottom the circle.

"NOW LET ME SHOW YOU TRUE SUFFERING!" The unicorn shouted

As the guards lunged at him, the unicorn took no time at all to completely annihilate every single one. He threw punches and kicks faster than anypony Dark Fire had ever seen, it was almost frightening to him. Once the unicorn ripped apart the armor of one of the guards with his bare hooves, the remaining forty backed up in fear.

"Are you afraid of me? Hahahahahahahaha… you better be."

The unicorn then teleported into another guard and smashed his armor into the guard's chest. When five more came to attack him from the back, the unicorn back-flipped out of the way and slammed them into the ground with magic, and threw them out of the window without remorse. Luckily, they were teleported back into the room by Dark Fire before they made contact with the ground. The unicorn then started to teleport so rapidly that it left after-images of himself. The guard's numbers were diminishing, but Dark Fire still didn't care as one guard after another was defeated in the most brutal way possible.

The green pony then smashed the helmet of one of the wounded guards on the floor as he continued to laugh maniacally, causing fear to penetrate the remaining guard's hearts. With only fifteen remaining, the unicorn dashed into the crowd and used one of the guards as living paddle to smash seven others into unconsciousness. He then fired a dark green beam of magic into another guard that caused five of them to fly into random objects. Only two guards remained, and the unicorn spared no time in delivering a fast kick into one of the remaining guards, sending him crashing through a five-foot thick pillar. The last guard was a unicorn, so he fired a magical beam into the dark green pony's face.

It made direct contact, but when the pony turned to look at him, the guard lost all sense of sanity. The green unicorn had a large scorch mark on his muzzle and seemed to take absolutely no damage from it. The unicorn then teleported into the guard and punched him in the stomach so hard that the outline of his hoof formed behind the guards back. The guard was clearly defeated but the unicorn continued to pummel him with rapid punches aimed at every part of his body. As the guard's life faded, the unicorn slammed him through the ground and kicked him through the floor, creating a huge crater.

"Nightmare, heal that guard before we lose him." Dark Fire said angrily. "Guys, deal with this."

As the unicorn made his way to the throne, Ammisive, Stritin, Eccentric, and Maneful appeared in front of him. Castigate simply walked and stood behind the four ponies.

"Get out of my way you weaklings!"

"Oh please… we've all tried to fight his control, you won't be an exception." Castigate said calmly. "What's your name anyways? You will be remembered as the fool that tried to fight Dark Fire.

The unicorn then formed energy into his hooves and blasted Castigate into a nearby table.

"My name is Desolent… the last name you will ever hear."

Ammisive then vanished in a flash of light and reappeared behind him. He slammed both hooves into him, only for them to be countered by Desolent who then kicked him into the wall. Stritin and Eccentric came full speed towards him and crashed their hooves into him with great strength. Desolent blocked both of these, but lost some ground while doing so. Maneful then appeared behind him and threw five magical balls towards him. Desolent then regained his posture and threw off the two earth ponies before reforming the five balls of magic into one.

He then threw it back at her, only for Castigate to appear in front of it and throw it off its course. Ammisive then manipulated the air around Desolent and threw him into the air. Unfortunately, Desolent regained control and launched a magical blast at him. Ammisive was able to dodge, but only just. As Desolent came back down to the ground, Stritin smashed his hooves into the floor, causing the ground beneath Desolent to rise up suddenly like an earth quake. Ammisive then made a small hurricane that threw Desolent off balance.

Stuck between two hard places, Castigate and Maneful charged up their magic and fired into the gap, resulting in a huge explosion of magic and power. Eccentric finished the job by powering his hoof cannon, which was a gift from Dark Fire, and fired a large blue beam into the mix that made the explosion five times bigger. When the elements relaxed, five dark green blasts emerged from the smoke and knocked them all unconscious. Desolent then emerged from the smoke unharmed.

"You see, all of your men are weak compared to me." Desolent said with pride.

Dark Fire had to hold Nightmare Moon and Sombra back due to their anger getting the better of them.

"You want to fight me, fine, but it better be good." Dark Fire said, jumping down to him.

"I just beat your best men, and you question if this fight will be good?!"

"You're powerful yes, but clearly lack discipline." Dark Fire pointed out.

"I WILL SHOW YOU DISCIPLINE YOU PATHETIC WELP OF A PONY!" Desolent shouted as he lunged towards Dark Fire.

Dark Fire then shot volts of lightning into Desolent's body, making his skeleton show in between the flashes of light. When Desolent lasted a minute without passing out, Dark Fire put full force into his lightning attack, making Desolent pass out within seconds.

"He's too dangerous Dark Fire, we have to end him." Nightmare Moon said, applying her hoof to his head.

"No… even he can be useful to our cause."

* * *

Desolent awoke in an unfamiliar room. He also noticed that he was lying on the most comfortable couch he had ever been on. He got up and looked around to see lots of decorative furniture and windows that showed the beautiful lights of Canterlot. Looking around, he saw a bowl of apples on a table and approached them to eat one. As he reached for the apple, he noticed a fast approaching shadow and ducked. Dark Fire had just smashed the table and rapidly turned around and kicked Desolent in the chest. He, on the other hoof, barely blocked it.

Desolent then teleported, attacking Dark Fire, but he blocked his move with more precision and tripped Desolent to the ground. He then attempted to do a ground attack, but was blocked yet again, this time with more painful consequences. Dark Fire grabbed Desolent's leg and threw him into the wall and punched his stomach. He quickly recovered and swiped at Dark Fire's head, but missed once more as Dark Fire threw him off the wall, teleported behind him, and back-hoofed him into a desk. The unicorn then rapidly got up and continued his angry assault at the unicorn.

"You fight with much strength and speed, but you show no control over it." Dark Fire said, blocking another punch.

Dark Fire then threw a punch of his own, but Desolent ducked under it and went for Dark Fire's chest area. He then latched on to Desolent, flipped over the punch, and slammed him into the ground.

"You also have so much arrogance and ignorance when you fight." Dark Fire said, pinning him to the ground.

Desolent then went through Dark Fire, reformed, and slammed into him. However, it was just an image, as Dark Fire threw an energy ball mixed with magic at the tricked unicorn. This caused Desolent to lose control of his magic and energy manipulation as he hit the floor with a crash.

"And that is why you were defeated." Dark Fire remarked as he walked over to Desolent.

"Then teach me what you know."

"Since I have found your name and what it represents, you shall keep it. Rise Desolent, for you are now the Element of Corruption and leader of the Elements of Disharmony!"

Desolent was then given a necklace like all the others as the black energy dissipated.

"You see Discord, even the strongest will can be convinced of a higher cause."

Discord was in the distance with popcorn as he clapped slowly.

"So… who wants chocolate pizza?"

* * *

"As leader of the elements, you must be better acquainted with them and be their friends. Because the elements are whole now, you will all share your abilities with one another to become the strongest fighting force in all of Equestria. It will also require-"

"Lord Fire, your presence is needed!" A guard rushed in.

"What for, we already have the last element?!"

"It's urgent… she won't leave us alone."

"She?"

Dark Fire then walked into the throne room to see Ammisive and Stritin standing next to the throne. However, before it was a very loud blue unicorn with white hair and a cape.

"Get out of here, call backs have been canceled." Ammisive said rudely.

"What's going on here?!" Dark Fire demanded.

"My Lord, this mare is crazy, she claims to be the best magic weilder in all of Equestria." Stritin said respectfully.

"HA, that would be me." Desolent said with pride.

"Enough. Who are you?" Dark Fire asked kindly.

"The Great and Powerful Trixie! The greatest and most powerful unicorn in-"

"Never heard of you." Dark Fire said bluntly. "But please, don't let me stop you from performing awe inspiring tricks.

"How could you have not heard about Trixie?!" She asked dumfounded.

"Look, I have an invasion planned tomorrow, if you have nothing to show me then-"

"But Trixie is the best magician the world has ever seen!"

"Then demonstrate."

Trixie was taken aback from this statement.

"With what?" She asked with newfound confidence

"With anything, just do something." Dark Fire said, losing interest.

"Ummm, I have defeated the dreaded Ursa Major!"

Dark Fire facehooved while Ammisive and Stritin kept themselves from bursting out laughing.

"Look, I don't think you-"

"Trixie is the most powerful unicorn, why don't you believe her?"

"THEN PROVE IT!" Dark Fire said, ticked off.

Trixie then conjured up a random bouquet of flowers, but then they burst into dust.

"Trixie, I'm sorry, you're not strong enough to be one of us. You will just humiliate yourself."

The word humiliate rang through her mind as she was reminded of what Twilight and her friends did to her. It caused a hidden spark to ignite deep within her heart.

"Trixie is the most powerful unicorn in history …I AM THE GREAT AND POWERFUL TRIXIE!"

She then stood up on her hind hooves and conjured a light blue ball of energy and magic into her hooves. Her eyes went pure white as she released the built up power with a loud scream resulting in all the lights and windows in the room to shatter into pieces. Desolent, Ammisive, and Stritin were left completely stunned at the demonstration of power. Dark Fire, however, was blushing furiously.

"Trixie… THAT WAS AWSOME! That's exactly what I've been looking for in somepony." Dark Fire said, jumping down next to her. "Together, you and I, will be the most powerful force on the entire planet. You will be my apprentice and princess of Equestria."

Trixie tried to show signs of disinterest, but fainted out of excitement.

"You have to be joking. I thought I was your apprentice!" Desolent shouted.

"You're the leader of the Elements, is that not good enough for you?"

Desolent stormed off angrily as Dark Fire continued to hold Trixie in his hooves.

"Together… we shall rule Equestra."


	13. Chapter 11 A

_**(Ok, as promised, i would tell you if something was supposed to happen that would prevent me from posting the next Saturday. So here are the next two chapters for you. In April, everything will go back to normal.) (This includes Ch 11 A and 11 B)**_

Chapter 11 A: The Broken Soul

One day after Trixie's arrival.

"Stop assuming things Desolent, you are very powerful, but I chose Trixie because she had hidden potential and could become a strong ally." Dark Fire stated.

"I'm clearly better than her! Why do you deny me this fact?" He asked aggressively.

"Within time my friend, things will become clear. Now, I believe that you still have a task to complete."

"You did inform me of this, but what was it about again?" Desolent asked, not changing his tone.

"My guards acquired a rebellious alicorn and put him in a locked down cell. I want you to corrupt him… permanently." Dark Fire said evilly.

"Ha, is that all you want? You act like it's hard."

"He resisted the hatred wave and I know he's not an element, but he has royal blood."

Dark Fire then pulled a lever that led down to a dungeon.

"Soon, not even the princesses will be able to resist my power. It will just take an example."

They soon made their way to the cells deep within the castle's depths. This is where Luna and the others stayed.

"Take note of these fools, you could learn something from it." Dark Fire said without looking.

Desolent then passed each cell until she reached Luna's.

"So I take it that this is Luna. Not so talkative when she's chained up."

"Who are you suppose to be?" Luna asked, weakly.

"I don't expect you to know me Luna…after all it was your sister that imprisoned me for five years in the blasted crystal mines!" He said, losing control of himself.

"Desolent, she can't hurt anypony else anymore. Leave her to rot." Dark Fire said, pulling him away. "Your real concern is the next cell."

Dark Fire then pointed to the cell on the left. Inside was a white alicorn with a sundial as a cutie mark. His mane and tail was dark purple with red tips on the ends. He also had pure white eyes, no iris, no pupils, just pure white."

"His cutie mark represents time, as in he can control it to some extent, I need that power." Dark Fire said, opening the cell.

Desolent then walked in and flowed dark yellow magic through his horn.

"Now all you have to do is-"

Desolent then grabbed the alicorn, ripped the chains off of him, and kicked him into the wall.

"DESOLENT, HE'S ALREADY BROKEN, STOP FIGHTING A BATTLE YOU'VE ALREADY WON!" Dark Fire ordered.

"Sometimes you have to make it clear that you're in charge." Desolent said, grabbing the alicorn by his neck and lifting him up.

"W-why… do you do this to us?" The alicorn struggled to say while being held.

"Your royal family and Twilight are the reasons why I was shamed in front of everypony, now you will pay with your blood!"

Desolent then transferred energy into the hoof that was holding the alicorn. He then held the alicorn there, ready to finish the job.

"Do it… you already took my family from me." The alicorn said bravely.

"Desolent...don't." Dark Fire said as red magic flowed into his horn.

Desolent then returned his look to the alicorn.

"And now I will take your freedom."

Desolent's horn then illuminated in a dark yellow color before he blasted the magic into the alicorns body. He then threw him across the cell, making him crash against the bars.

"NOW THANK ME FOR YOUR PAIN!" Desolent yelled.

The alicorn laid there, complete immobilized. Desolent then slammed his hoof on the alicorns face.

"BEG FOR MORE SUFFERING!" He said, applying more pressure.

"Desolent release him… NOW!" Dark Fire said enraged.

Desolent showed hesitation before removing his hoof. Dark Fire then healed the wounds the white alicorn took before removing him from the cell.

"You must forgive my friend here, he tends to overdue things a lot." Dark fire said in a friendly voice. "What is your name by the way?"

Desolent snarled as he walked by the recovering pony.

"Zepher, and why did you summon me in the first place?" He asked, as the yellow aura faded into his coat.

"NO DON'T LISTEN TO HIM, SNAP OUT OF IT!" Luna shouted from a nearby cell.

"Silence you worthless rat!" Desolent said, throwing a magical blast at Luna that caused her to yell in pain.

"Remember who you are Zepher, remember that we love you, REMEMBER WHAT THEY DID TO YOUR MOTHER!"

The alicorn struggled to concentrate as two sides battled within his mind.

"I… can't… SHUT-UP!" Zepher shouted, losing the last of his free will to corruption.

"No… no" Luna whispered, sobbing heavily. "I'm sorry Tia… I couldn't stop him."

"Mother you say… HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Now I have truly won the ultimate battle. I've turned Celestia's son against her!" Dark Fire said, continuing to laugh evilly. "Come Zepher, leave your pathetic life behind with the other weaklings."

Dark Fire, Desolent, and the newly recruited Zepher walked away from the dungeon, shutting the door for the last time.

"Luna, they're gone." Cadance whispered to her.

"Along with what remained of my sister…" Luna said silently.

"I know how It feels to lose somepony too Luna, how do you think I felt when they took Shining away?" Cadance said softly, holding back tears of her own. "You must never give up, always have hope."

* * *

"Desolent, you mentioned something about Twilight back there, what did she do to you?" Dark Fire questioned.

He gave a harsh glare at the mere mention of her name.

"What did she do?! WHAT DID SHE DO?! She did everything to me, made me a failure in everypony's eyes, took the title of Celestia's apprentice away from me, and made me look like a traitor in front of all of Canterlot! I was imprisoned for five years Dark Fire. FIVE BUCKEN YEARS FOR PROVING MY POINT! I am better than her at everything, magic, fighting, strength, you name it! So why, WHY DID CELESTIA CHOOSE HER INSTEAD OF ME!?" Desolent questioned as his voice echoed through the halls.

A long moment of silence came over the three as Dark Fire and Zepher stood there in thought.

"You no longer need to have those thoughts, for both of them have met their fate at my hooves."

"What do you mean… Twilight was never-"

"I ended her. She will no longer hurt anypony again." Dark Fire said, softly.

Even though Zepher and Desolent didn't notice, Dark Fire was struggling to hold back tears of sadness at the thought of Twilight's fate.

"No… she's alive, I know it! She's just like a virus that you can't destroy, and I'm the cure that will end her forever!"

"I threw her out of a window, Desolent!" Dark Fire said aggressively, trying to conceal his sorrow. "Nopony could have survived a fall like that and you know it. Nopony is left to stop us from taking over Equestria, which is why we make our attack today. You may rest for now though; Ammisive will lead the invasion force to the northeast, taking Cloudsdale and anything else in its way. You will go Southwest and do the same. I do tolerate some failure, but only just a bit. Do I make myself clear?"

"Of course... my lord." Desolent whispered as he walked off.

* * *

Twilight and the rest of her friends waited for almost three weeks now, but still no news or even a glimpse of hope. Despite the situation, everypony did what they could to stay positive... except Twilight.

"Sugarcube, I know there's not much to do, but starin' at that rock all day can't be good for you." Applejack said, sitting next to her.

"I just can't stop thinking about it... it's just so-"

"Sometimes we just have to keep lookin' until we find the needle in the haystack. We'll make it out of this. We always do."

"But how do all of you keep going? I just don't have to strength to go on." Twilight whispered.

"Believe me it's hard, but we've been findin' fresh food in the forest, and there's a clean spring in the cave. That's probably because it's been rainin' or snowin' outside, either way it could be worse." Applejack said, smiling at her.

"Your right Applejack, I should stay positive, we still have a chance to save everypony." Twilight said with confidence.

Once she finished, Endershine rushed through the cave looking worried.

"It's about time you showed up!" Rainbow ridiculed.

"You try acting as a spy for more than a week and see if you're not tired after that!" Endershine responded

"Okay sign me up, I would be the fastest spy ever." Rainbow declared.

Enderpearl then emerged from a dark corner of the cave.

"What news do you bring?"

"I have good news and bad news." She said, her concerns increasing.

"Lets hear the good news first, we have been through the worst conditions ever." Rarity said, brushing dust out of her mane. "Ooh, where can a lady get a bath around here?"

"Okay here it goes. Twilight, they think your dead."

"How is that good news?" Rainbow asked rudely.

"I know why! It's because you get free ice-cream in heaven!" Pinkie shouted joyfully.

"No, it means that they're not going to be looking for us." Endershine explained.

"S-so what's the bad news?" Fluttershy asked, cuddled next to a rock.

"Dark Fire has united every known enemy that Princess Celestia has ever delt with." She said grimly. "This includes Discord, Chrysalis, and Sombra."

"They're all back! I thought we took care of them for good." Twilight said, losing what little hope she had.

"It gets worse, Dark Fire has made a group called the Elements of Disharmony."

"The Elements of what now?" Applejack asked, confused.

"The Elements of Disharmony, or, Elements of Chaos, are on the complete opposite ends of the Elements of Harmony and are incredibly strong. Even though they might not have the exact negative element, their personalities are nothing like yours, they're ruthless and will not stop until you are all defeated. Another thing is, Dark Fire has started an invasion. They attack Cloudsdale today." She finished explaining.

"Then I'm not going to wait around anymore!" Rainbow said, getting up and running to the exit.

"NO!" Endershine shouted teleporting into her path. "If you go, you run the risk of never seeing your friends again! You will also expose us and cause the last hope of Equestria to perish."

"What good is hope if you can't defend your home!" Rainbow said, dashing past her and flying off.

"RAINBOW!"

Endershine was about to catch up to her, but was stopped by Enderpearl's hoof.

"Let her go. This is her fight and she will come back. She'll have to."

Back at the castle.

"Dark Fire, why did you even let this failure inside in the first place?" Castigate said, pointing to Trixie.

"Why do you hate her so much, why does everypony I meet hate her, WHY DOES MOST OF THE FANBASE HATE HER?!" Dark Fire yelled, going off into a rant.

"Shut-up Castigate, it's not like you could see talent within Trixie anyways." Trixie said.

"And I'm supposed to listen to a poor showpony like you? It's a wonder how you even became his apprentice." Castigate replied.

"Trixie's skills and looks must have convinced him otherwise, something you could never understand." Trixie spat back.

"Hold on Trixie, you're my apprentice because of your potential, not for your…looks. And second, why do you two fight like a brother and sister?" Dark Fire demanded.

"Because we unfortunately are, it's such an embarrassment." Castigate said.

"An embarrassment! You wouldn't know a thing about embarrassment, you have the easy life." Trixie again replied.

"So it's my fault my father took me and left you with mother? Both of you were mistakes to him, a shame to my family. I was the perfect son until you showed up." He said with hatred in his voice.

"Do not insult Trixie's mother! She cared for you even if you didn't." She strongly replied.

"How is she anyways? ...Begging for more bits as usual or pampering you with lies on how you're the best."

"Silence you stupid loudmouthed piece of garbage!" Trixie shouted angrily.

"If that's what I am, I don't even want to know what you are… oh wait, of course I do."

"Castigate, leave her alone." Dark Fire ordered.

"Oh sure, take her side... you're just like that fool she calls a mom." He said as he walked off.

"You will never understand the Great and Powerful Trixie!" She stated with pride.

"Trixie, as your new master I demand to know what happened to you." Dark Fire said, walking up to her.

"Trixie… doesn't know what you're talking about." She said, looking away.

"You might be a good boaster, but definitely a horrible liar." Dark Fire said with a smile.

"Trixie never lies about herself." She stated.

"Then why are you shaking? Please tell me. I know what it's like to feel pain, just let it out."

She continued to shake until her eyes started to water up.

"A-are you… crying?" Dark Fire asked in shock.

"N-no… the Great and Powerful Trixie never cries… she never… never…"

She then collapsed onto Dark Fire and sobbed heavily.

"I'm so sorry mom… I couldn't save you…I COULDN'T SAVE YOU!" Trixie yelled, weeping to the point where Dark Fire's coat was getting soaked.

Dark Fire stood there as she let her tears, waiting for her to build up strength once again.

"There, there. Just tell me what happened." He whispered.

"You know that Trixie's parents separated, right?"

Dark Fire nodded.

"That's where it all started. When Trixie was still young, her mother always believed in her, always told her that she could be anything if she believed hard enough."

"Your father didn't though did he? instead he took your brother."

"His name was Affluent, and along with him went mother's bits."

"Affluent? Isn't he the founder of Equestria's metal factories?"

"Yes. That greedy pony, he wanted nothing but more bits and left mother because she had none. It was only six years later that it happened."

* * *

Years ago, in a worn down building.

"Mom, I'm back from the soup kitchen. I managed to get the last one." Trixie said, entering a beat up house she called home.

"Well, isn't that just sweet of you, but I have to make sure the neighbors have something to eat first." Trixie's mother kindly told her.

She had a light gray and blue coat mixture with a similar mane and tail as Trixie. The only difference was that it had a light green tint within the mane and tail instead of blue. She also had dark orange eyes along with a star and moon as a cutie mark.

"But mom, you haven't eaten anything in days… you need this." Trixie pleaded to her.

"Others come before us Trixie. You're a fully grown mare now, surly you understand this."

Trixie hesitated before giving up what was supposed to be her gift.

"Now come along Trixie, let's give these ponies the gift of love and kindness." She said, humming a song as she walked out of the door.

"I don't understand you mom, you give even when you have nothing to give and expect nothing in return. You give even when you're in need… I hope I can be like you one day.

As Trixie walked out of the door, she saw her mother giving the bowl of soup to her neighbors.

"Here you go Mr. Pepper, I hope this is enough."

"Just seeing your smile is enough to warm everypony's heart, Mystic Charade." The dark gray pony said happily.

"Please, just call me Charade, there's no need to be formal with me." She said as the gray pony closed the door.

"What are we going to eat now?" Trixie asked worried.

"We must trust that within good deeds, good things will come in return. Showing ponies kindness, even when we have no reason to, lets them know how this world was meant to be. A world where there is no greed, hate, or depression, but of happiness and joy."

"You act like everything will be ok, I don't see how though."

"You need to open your eyes to the hope in this world, now go inside the house and get some rest."

Later that day.

"Thanks again Charade, you're the best." A tan colored pony said as he walked off.

"Mom, how'd it go?" Trixie asked, practicing some magic tricks from a book.

"It went well… I had a great time helping the other ponies... how are you?" She asked a bit faintly.

"Mom… is something wrong?" Trixie asked in a fearful tone.

"Nothing… nothing is wrong dear, just keep practicing." Charade whispered, putting her hoof over her heart. Before collapsing.

"MOM!"

* * *

"Trixie tried everything possible, but nothing was working. The only thing left was to call this doctor that could apparently cure everything."

"How could you afford something like that?" Dark Fire asked.

"Trixie couldn't afford him because he was corrupt and took advantage of everypony that was desperate. Trixie had no choice…"

* * *

"FIVE THOUSAND BITS!" Trixie shouted in shock. "Where am I supposed to get money like that?"

"I really don't care, sell yourself if you have to, but your mother won't last long with this heart disease." The doctor said, grabbing his bag.

"I refuse to stoop to that level of shame!" She yelled, blushing.

"Then I hope you're ready to say goodbye to her. And your taxes for this house are due in two weeks, this is your last chance to pay before we take your house from you." He said as he slammed the door.

Trixie, completely filled with sadness, walked over to her mother.

"I promise you mom… I will get those bits for you." Trixie said, grabbing her mother's magician had and cape. "I will be just like you. I will become... The Great and Powerful Trixie."

* * *

"So you took on the role of your mother as a magician and show pony?" Dark Fire said.

"Yes, her show name was Sharada. Trixie kept her name though."

"Then why do you lie about what you do? Didn't she teach you her skills."

"She never had the time, and I was always told that if I believed hard enough that I could become anything and be anything."

"So that's why you say you're the best…because you believe it will come true."

"It was to save mother. But as I came closer and closer to my goal, I let it go to my head. I was so close, but then I did a show… in Ponyville. Everything was fine, I put on a fantastic show and got the bits that I needed, but then two stupid colts brought an actual Ursa Minor to the town. They all believed that I could stop the enraged animal… but I couldn't. Then that stupid mare had to show up, Twilight, yes that's her name. She exposed me as a fraud, and as a result I lost everything. The bits, the cart, all gone… all gone."

"What happened after that?"

"What I had feared for so many years…"

* * *

"Mom… I was so close to getting the bits… but… but-"

"It's ok Trixie… it's ok… don't worry about me." Charade said, lying on a torn up bed.

"I've failed you… I couldn't raise the money to cure you… I CANT SIT HERE AND WATCH YOU GO!" Trixie said, tears streaming from her eyes.

"You… you've done so much more than I could possibly ask of you. You are now the light of this world Trixie, remember that." Charade whispered, losing strength.

"NO… NO DON'T LEAVE ME!" Trixie shouted, holding on to her hoof. "I LOVE YOU! ...DON'T LEAVE ME!"

"My life has been a happy one because of you… I couldn't ask for a better one." Charade said, smiling to her daughter.

"Please… please hold on… I will get help, you're going to make it, I WONT LET YOU GO!" Trixie yelled as more tears flowed.

"Always remember who you are, Trixie Lulamoon. Remember that even you can change this world."

"I can't do it without you… I'm not ready."

"I have raised you since you were a filly… I see so much in you Trixie, don't let it go to waste."

"I won't mom… I won't."

"And remember T-trixie tha-at I… I… Lo-"

Charade could say no more. Her time in Equestia had passed right before her trembling daughter's eyes.

"Mom… mom… wake up… wake up mom! WAKE UP! …WAKE UP! PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME! MMMMMOOOOOOMMMM!"

* * *

"One day later, the taxer's came and took the house away from me… they didn't care that my mother was gone. They threw her out into the dirt… not even giving her a proper burial." Trixie said, sobbing into Dark Fire's coat. "That's when I heard about you, the last hope that I had."

Dark Fire stood in silence as he tried to digest what he just heard.

"Trixie… I want you to stay here… until I call upon you."

"Where… where are you going?"

"To take care of something that should have been dealt with long ago."

Dark Fire later went to an old shelter.

"Is this the place?" Dark Fire said to a nearby pony.

"Yes, this is where Charade used to stay before her passing, but it's now owned by a company." Mr. Pepper said honorably.

"Tell everypony here that their debts are paid, that they will no longer live under such horrible conditions." Dark Fire said, taking out his seal from a bag. "This seal will give you access to Equestria's reserves of bits, food, and water. If you or anypony else in this place need anything, anything at all, please don't hesitate."

Dark Fire continued along the path until he reached a fairly large building. When he entered, he had no regret for what he was about to do.

Inside the building.

"You think I care if your son is starving? You will get me that money or else." A light green pegasus said, counting multiple stacks of bits.

"Sir… I have nothing to give. You've taken everything from me." A charcoal earthpony responded sickly.

"Well then, I guess I need to show you what happens when those who borrow from me don't pay."

The pony then pressed his hoof onto a speaker.

"Take our friend's son away from him, and make sure he doesn't see the light of day again!"

"No… don't take my son, he's the only thing left of my wife!"

"Take him away." The Pegasus ordered as two earth ponies grabbed the begging stallion.

"You can't do this to me!"

"But I can… and I will do it to others!"

A huge explosion then occurred as Dark Fire entered the room. He didn't even bother for a response as he grabbed the two bouncers by the neck with magic and flung them into the walls.

"Prince Fire?!" Both ponies shouted in confusion.

"You, sick, twisted, filthy minded, under graded, uncaring, simple, greedy, %^$ $#*!" Dark Fire yelled, teleporting in front of the business ponies' desk.

"N-now… can we talk about this?"

Dark Fire then put his hooves on the desk, and ripped it in two as he flung both pieces away from him.

"I… I never did anything to you!" The Pegasus shouted in fear.

"IT'S NOT WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO ME... BUT WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO OTHERS! NOTHING SICKENS ME MORE THAN PONIES THAT TORTURE OTHERS FOR THEIR AMUSEMENT!"

"I don't know what your-"

"SHUT-UP YOU WORTHLESS PIECE OF %#%^! YOU TAKE AWAY SOMEPONY'S HOUSE EVEN WHEN THEY GO THROUGH THE WORST TIME OF THEIR LIFE AND YOU JUST SIT BACK AND LAUGH!"

Dark Fire then punched the Pegasus to the point of tears.

"You want it to stop do you? Is that what you're crying about? Did you stop when they suffered?!" Dark Fire said, kicking him through a couch.

"I'm… I'm sorry!"

"You will be… and an apology won't be enough for you."

Dark Fire then dragged the pony and the rest that worked there out of the building.

"One only learns when they lose… WHICH IS SOMETHING YOU WILL LEARN PERMINANTLY!"

Dark Fire then shot an energy blast into the building, destroying everything in one, huge explosion of light.

"Now suffer like everypony before you has...AND NEVER COME BACK!"

Dark Fire, to the corner of his eye, caught sight of the doctor that Trixie talked about.

"You're the doctor that can cure everything right?" Dark Fire mocked.

"Yeah… why?" He replied fearfully.

"CURE THIS!" Dark Fire said as green fog surrounded the pony.

The pony doctor then collapsed onto the ground, almost lifeless.

"This sickness was claimed as incurable to even the greatest scientists… first it paralyzes, then soon destroys every. single. organ in your body. I will require one hundred thousand bits to cure it… I don't care how you get the money though, sell yourself if you have to, but you won't last long with that disease. Maybe next time you will show mercy to those that suffer...in the afterlife."

Dark Fire then walked off, leaving everything in ruin behind him. One hour later, Dark Fire recovered the body of Charade and gave her a proper burial in the Canterlot royal cemetery. Where royalty and war heroes were put and recognized by everypony of all raises. Dark Fire and Trixie both honored her for what she did, and who she was to everypony she helped and served. As Trixie walked away, she noticed a new star in the sky, one brighter than any she had ever seen. A star that honored the mare named Mystic Charade.


	14. Chapter 11 B

_**(Ok, as promised, i would tell you if something was suppose to happen that would prevent me from posting the next Saturday. So here are the next two chapters for you. In April everything will go back to normal.) (This includes chapter 11 A and 11 B)**_

_**(Edit: If you haven't read Ch 11 A yet, please do so.)**_

Chapter 11 B: Fall of a Floating City

Darkness fell upon Cloudsdale as black clouds formed over the city. Even though it was on the brink of a thunderstorm, there was silence… the silence before the storm…

"Strange, they seem almost prepared for us." Ammisive said to himself, standing on a cloud above the city.

"Ammisive, your division is ready and the ground forces are surrounding the city." A Pegasus commander said to him.

"Good, so all five hundred Pegasi soldiers are up here?"

"Yes sir. Speak when you're ready."

Ammisive then turned around to all the soldiers that stood before him on the cloud.

"Stallions, today… we make history! History that will be recorded for the centuries! Stories that will be told for years to come to ponies of all races! The Pegasi on the ground are counting on us to distract most of the guards on the cloud's surface! Our objective is to take down the spotlights for total darkness! When we do that, the rest of the deviation will ambush the guards through the clouds and finish the job! I do not expect stealth from any of you, but take down as many ponies as you can before you're detected! Remember, take no prisoners and show no mercy and I certainly don't take failure! FOR THE GLORY OF THE NEW CONFLAGRATION CONFEDERACY!"

He then turned back around and lifted his right hoof into the air.

"On my mark… ONE!"

The Pegasi then assumed a sprinting position.

"TWO!"

They then unfurled their wings, making a loud, "pomf" noise.

"THREE!" Ammisive shouted as he dived off of the cloud.

Lightning flashed across the sky repeatedly as he, and his division of five-hundred Pegasi, made a fast descent into the city. Thirty seconds passed before the first Pegasus made contact with the clouds. You would think that, because the ground is made of clouds, that the landing would be silent. Ammisive proved that assumption false as he crashed into the ground at full force, making several guards fly into random directions.

"Home… it feels good to be back…hahahahahahahahaha!"

A multitude amount of guards then leaped out from several buildings and surrounded the Pegasus in a circle.

"Surrender now, and you will not be harmed." One of the guards ordered.

"It's so surprising that every time you surround your enemy, you give them a chance to surrender even though they won't. What happens instead is that you leave yourselves wide open!"

Ammisive then ran around inside of the circle and knocked out every guard in seconds. Outside of the circle were more guards charging at him from all directions. As one came behind him, he ducked, making the guard topple over him and bucked the next guard that followed. Five more approached him rapidly as he lunged himself towards them. Tackling the first two, he flipped over the other three, and dashed into them with great speed.

Several more guards then attempted to get a quick punch on him, but missed even with the help of their wings. Ammisive quickly delivered multiple punches to the Pegasus guards until they passed out from pain. More guards came to attack the pegasus, but all met a fast and untimely defeat at his hooves. He then looked up to see dozens upon dozens of guards grouping together to attack.

"How the heck did Cloudsdale get a defense force so quickly, and how are they so prepared?!" Ammisive yelled to himself as he kicked another guard through a cloud building.

More fighting endured throughout the floating city as more and more guards came to confront Ammisive and his battalion of Shadow Guards. Ammisive's brigade was holding out, taking out more guards before being defeated, but their numbers were dwindling and more reinforcements kept coming.

"Ammisive! We took cloud four, seven, and thirteen, but we're nowhere near our objective!" The Pegasus commander shouted.

"MAKE IT HAPPEN YOU FOOL, BEFORE I THROW YOU THERE MYSELF!" Ammisive shouted into his face.

"We've lost almost half of our stallions, we won't last long." The commander said in fear.

"YOU'RE USELESS!" Ammisive yelled as he picked up the pegasus.

"Ahhh, what are you-?"

Ammisive then magnetized the commander's armor and flung him into a crowd of about one-hundred Pegasi guards.

"Eliminating any possibility of failure." He whispered as he shot a lightning bolt at the commander.

Because the commander's armor was magnetized, almost all the guards nearby were forcefully bonded to the armor. When the lightning bolt struck, a huge explosion of electricity burst from the crowd, knocking everypony out in the area. Ammisive then charged into the open gap that he created, unfurled his wings, and took flights towards the objective. About fifty guards broke off from the main group to chase the orange pony before he took out the spotlights. When he made it halfway, he stopped in mid-flight and turned around.

"You think you can take on the fastest Pegasus in the world?! You think you actually have a chance of defeating me?! Allow me to show you the error of your ways!" Ammisive said in a cocky tone as he flew into the swarm of guards.

Ammisive knew that a pegasus's strength was fighting in the air, but he attacked regardless of this, even though the guards would be harder to knock out of the sky. Taking on five guards at the same time, while still trying to remain airborne, was thrilling for the orange Pegasus. Thrill and danger was what Ammisive lived for, even if there was a chance of losing a limb or wing. The guards would either attempt to strike at his wings or his neck in hopes that it would take him out. Yet every time they tried, Ammisive would make their plan backfire on them and take out three to four guards in the process.

Luckily for the unconscious guards, there was a large cloud below the battle that prevented them from plummeting down to the surface below. Soon all the guards were defeated, but a hundred more took their place. Ammisive then touched down on the cloud carrying the spotlights and faced the guards.

"We are sorry, but it seems that we've hit a bit of turbulence." Ammisive laughed, swiping his hoof across the sky.

The wind before him went ballistic as it caused all the guards to hurl into random directions. As he laughed at their fate, the thunderstorm took full affect, as heavy rain fell upon the city.

* * *

"I can't believe we're winning this fight!" One of the guards said out of amazement.

"It's not over yet, we have to watch out for stragglers attempting to take these things out." Soarin said, patting a spotlight.

"I think it's because they didn't have many soldiers." The guard assumed.

"Unless it was a… distraction!" Soarin said out of fear as he shined the spotlight on the ground under Cloudsdale.

The light shined on what he thought was thousands of dark guards ready to strike on command.

"Holy apple pie! Tell Spitfire-"

"So you caught on Soarin... I was hoping somepony would." Ammisive whispered, holding the unconscious guard in his hooves.

"Lightning Flash?! W-what are you doing on their team?" He asked shocked.

"Isn't it obvious, you were one of reasons I was rejected by the Wonderbolts!" He responded back.

"You're still holding that grudge against us? You tried to use your weather powers to get yourself ahead in the tryouts. You were cheating."

"IT'S MY ABITIY TO USE WHEN I SEE FIT, HOW IS THAT CHEATING!?"

Because of his outrage, ten guards from each side charged at him. Ammisive then casted an air wave to his right, causing the guards to fly off the cloud tower. He then darted left and right into the remaining guards until he was passed them. The orange pony popped his forehooves as the guards fell in sync behind him.

"Do you now know why I'm-"

Ammisive was then punched across the face by Soarin as he flew into him. Ammisive countered by kicking him into the railing of the tower.

"You were always a slow thinker, never able to figure things out on your own, is that why you kicked me out?! Was it because you were afraid that I would be the next star of the show?!" He shouted.

"You always played lone pony… you never helped out the team." Soarin said, getting back up.

"It was a demonstration of my abilities!"

"It was more like overconfidence."

"So it's wrong to be proud of who you are!"

"Not unless it's the only thing that drives you."

"It has gotten me much more than I could possibly imagine…"

Ammisive's eyes then flashed brightly. Before Soarin could respond, Several Shadowbolts grabbed and pinned the Wonderbolt down to the cloud floor.

"It has gotten me power, honor, respect, leadership of the Shadowbolts, control of my powers, friends and royalties from the prince himself. Something you could never have." Ammisive said, passing around him while smirking.

"And what about happiness and love?" Soarin said to him.

Ammisive paused his passing at those words, his smile turned into a frown. Soarin's words cut straight into his heart.

"What happened to you?" Soarin asked him. "We were the best of friends, Lightning. And you let your plan of revenge impact your life."

The orange Pegasus slowly turned around to face Soarin.

"My name is Ammisive now… The Element of Rage and fastest flyer in the world. AND BY MY HOOVES YOU WILL PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID!"

He threw his hoof into the air as a lightning bolt hit it like a rod. Ammisive laughed evilly as he brought his charged hoof closer and closer to Soarin's muzzle. He then brought his hoof up and was about to strike until a bright yellow blur bucked him into the cloud tower. Unfortunately, that caused Ammisive to subconsciously launch the lightning into the nearby spotlights, destroying all of them on contact.

"Spitfire!" Soarin yelled joyfully.

The rest of the Wonderbolts hopped into the fray as they confronted their arch rivals.

"Let him go or prepare to fight!" Spitfire ordered.

"Of all the things you could have said Spitfire… you said that?" Ammisive laughed as the rest of the Shadowbolts followed his lead. "Could you be any more predictable?"

"Lightning Flash, you're behind this?!" She said out of anger and a bit of sadness.

"The one and only, but your little heroic act just cost you the fall of Cloudsdale!" Ammisive scorned.

"Your little army is finished; you don't have a chance against all of us."

"News spreads slowly around here I take it. One, the sun is out; we already won to begin with. We're just establishing the fact that we're the top ponies now. Two, those spotlights were the only thing stopping the full onslaught of my army, now you won't see them coming."

Spitfire looked over the edge to see… well, nothing. Ammisive was right, it was near impossible to see anything on the ground.

"And three, the most important, I'm an Element of Disharmony. You are the ones that have no chance! With that in mind Wonderbolts, do you still want to keep fighting?"

"We're going to fight until every last one of us is defeated!" One of the Wonderbolts shouted bravely.

Ammisive laughed at their courage as he kicked down the door to the watch tower.

"You will be remembered as those who fought a hopeless battle and thought they could win… SHADOWBOLTS, FINISH THEM OFF!"

* * *

Ammisive walked through the entrance as the fight broke out behind him, his next objective was to take out the commanders and cause chaos among the enemy troops. The building he was in wasn't large in width, but it made up for this in height. Ten guards then ran up to him, but were blasted back by an air wave.

"Ok ten guards, first floor… forty guards, fourth floor subtract ten, thirty guards left. I hate math." Ammisive said, bashing through the cloud roof.

Three guards were instantly flung out of the building, not surprising because it was made of clouds. One of the guards then tried to attack the pegasus with a spear and… wait, how did you get a spear?!

"You gave it to me!" The guard yelled.

"So in a world of Technicolor ponies, there are still rooms to make lethal weapons?!" Ammisive said, crossing his hooves.

"I don't know ok, I wanted to be unique in this fight but noooo!" The guard exaggerated.

The guards and Ammisive stood around awkwardly.

"Soooo… should we just continue?" One of the guards asked.

"Yeah. Let me see that spear first." Ammisive said, holding out his hoof.

"Okay." The guard said happily, handing him the spear.

"Thank you."

Ammisive then smashed the spear over the guards head, breaking off the spear head. Spinning around the broken spear around his hooves, he assumed a fighting stance on his hind-legs.

"You have hooves… how are you doing that?!"

"I'm just awesome like that." Ammisive said, striking the guard across the face with the pole. "Anypony else want to question me?!"

The other five ponies in the room looked at each other before jumping at the Pegasus. Within seconds, all the ponies were swatted down like flies. Ammisive then caused the cloud roof above him to dissipate, making the guards fall to the floor. Six of them hit the floor while the other four recovered before impact. Ammisive then took the poll and with two swipes, knocked out the six guards around him.

The other four guards attempted to react, but Ammisive had already lunged into the first one and jumped off. He used the last three guards to ascend to the top of the tower, almost like a pinball, and knocking them out in the process. When he burst through the top he caused a gush of wind to erupt around him, sending the general's bodyguards flying. He then landed, punched the general into the railing, and pinned the general there.

"Enjoying the view? Good, now I want you to order you guards to surrender before they meet their fate."

The general then pushed Ammisive off and swung at him so fast that he barely dodged. He retaliated by attempting to hit the general across the face, but the helmet the general had had covered his face. Ammisive then swung harder at the helmet and ripped it clean off. He got a fast look at the pony's face before the pony chopped the pole in half, and kicked him across the floor. He looked up to see a cyan blue Pegasus in royal guard armor standing proudly in front of him.

"I should have known you were the one leading the attack on your own home! How could you do this to us, Lightning Flash?"

"RAINBOW DASH!" Ammisive shouted angrily, charging into her.

Rainbow then grabbed him and slammed him into the railing, overlooking the city.

"You betrayed us all Lightning, I won't let you destroy our home!"

"You're too late Crashie, soon all of Cloudsdale will be under Dark Fire's hooves!"

"Your army is finished and… DID YOU JUST CALL ME CRASHIE?!" Rainbow screamed, smashing Ammisive in the back.

"My name is Ammisive now, and as for you…"

He then threw off Rainbow and punched her in the chest. The armor shielded her from most of the attack, but she was still stunned by it.

"You might be fastest pony in Equestria, aside from me of course, but you were never this strong!" Rainbow stated.

"You no doubt have heard of the Elements of Disharmony…HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"You're one of those guys?!" Rainbow said, surprised.

"Oh yes, and much more! Now witness the end of Cloudsdale!" Ammisive shouted.

Ammisive then swiped his hoof to the left, causing a blast of wind to knock Rainbow off of the four-story tower. She recovered just seconds before hitting the cloud floor on her head.

"My army will crush your resistance like a bug; meanwhile I will make you regret everything you did to me." Ammisive said darkly, dropping down to her.

"I never did anything to you, why are you taking out your rage on everypony?!" Rainbow asked.

"Am I supposed to give you pity? You stood idly by as I lost my home, my friends, my reputation. Why should I not blame you for everything you've done to me?!" Ammisive yelled angrily.

"Because we're friends Lightning… best friends. I tried my best to get you back from being shunned. They wouldn't listen, but your back, why do you still hate us?" She said sincerely.

"We were never friends Rainbow; get that out of your clouded mind!" Ammisive responded, angrily.

"I looked up to you, we watched each other's backs, and now here you are. A former shell of yourself… broken."

"I'VE HEARD ENOUGH FROM YOU, NOW PREPARE TO PERISH!"

Ammisive lunged at Rainbow, attempting to shut her up for good. She swayed to the left just before he made contact and started throwing punches of her own. Ammisive countered, ducking under her and bucked her in the chest, making a loud clash sound. Once again the armor repelled the attacks. Shortly after, Rainbow recovered. Both Ammisive and Rainbow were throwing punches faster then anypony could count. This was a typical fight for both of them. Eventually, Rainbow got a lucky hit when she kicked him in the muzzle, making him back off.

"I forgot that you were a black belt in karate. To think we were the top students." Ammisive recalled, wiping his muzzle.

"We were… I was better though." Rainbow said, smiling.

"YOU WERE NOWHERE NEAR MY LEVEL!"

Rainbow blinked and in that split second, Ammisive had vanished. She looked around frantically for the Pegasus.

"Hiding like a coward again?! Where are you?!" Rainbow taunted.

"UP HERE, MORON!"

Rainbow looked up to see Ammisive coming down with an elbow drop. Rainbow rolled her eyes as she stepped to the right, causing him to smash though the clouds.

"You kind of missed."

"I KNOW I MISSED, WOULD YOU STOP PESTERING ME!" Ammisive yelled, jumping in front of Rainbow, preparing to uppercut her.

She swayed to the side and decked the angry Pegasus across the face.

"Sooooo… where did all that cockiness go?" She teased.

Ammisive smiled when he got up to face her.

"All according to plan…" He whispered, gesturing behind Rainbow.

She turned around abruptly to see literally thousands of shadow guards rising through the clouds and defeating what was left of the resistance. There she stood in shock, horror, and sadness.

"Now do you realize? Your presence here was in vain, you've lost Crashie. Gaze upon it. Witness the destruction of your home, your life, and your dream. Watch it all just disintegrate away before your eyes; know that despite your best efforts you've still lost to me! Congratulations… you're…a… failure." He said, whispering the last sentence in her ear.

"NNNNNNOOOOOO!"

Rainbow swerved around and bucked Ammisive straight in the jaw, sending him crashing into several shadow guards behind him.

"I HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU INTERFERING WITH MY PLANS! NOW RAINBOW, YOU WILL WITNESS YOUR END!"

Ammisive became so enraged that his veins could be seen even by Rainbow from a far distance. Letting out a loud battle cry as he stood up on his hind-legs, the heavy rainfall around him increased dramatically as a maelstrom formed over Cloudsdale. Rainbow looked to see water form around Ammisive's forelegs, creating a water barrier around them just before they formed into icicles. Ammisive literally turned his hooves into ice blades.

"Now… you will experience pain like never before!" Ammisive said, laughing maniacally as lighting struck both of his wings separately, causing them to flare with flowing electricity.

"YOU'RE INSANE LIGHTNING; STOP THIS BEFORE YOU DESTROY EVERYTHING!" Rainbow yelled, attempting to be heard over the storm.

"IF THAT'S WHAT IT TAKES TO GET REVENGE, THEN BY ALL MEANS NECESSARY, I WILL DESTROY EVERYTHING YOU CARE ABOUT!"

Ammisive then lunged himself forward to attack. Rainbow was now struggling to dodge and sway out of every swing Ammisive threw at her. Knowing good and well that if this kept up, there would be more to worry about than an army and an enraged Pegasus. When she attempted to strike his back, she was electrocuted and thrown off.

"Using lighting as a shield?! That is so not cool!" Rainbow said, recovering from the shock.

"I DO WHAT I MUST TO WIN, SOMETHING YOU WILL NEVER UNDERSTAND!"

The orange pony, out of rage, flew straight at her with his frozen blades. Rainbow quickly reacted by flipping over the Pegasus, grabbing him by the hind-legs, and slamming him into the cloud. Ammisive countered with a ground attack, sending Rainbow down. Rainbow blinked repeatedly before realizing that Ammisive was about to stab her while she was grounded and rolled out of the way. When she got up, Ammisive lunged towards her and sliced upwards. She barely had time to dodge and miss the attack; however, the armor was sliced clean off.

Rainbow couldn't take much more of this and took the offensive once again. This time she was successful when she countered Ammisive's attack, and shattered the ice blade on his right hoof. Ammisive screamed in anger as he smashed the shattered ice into her face, sending her flying forty feet. He then melted the ice around his left hoof to make a whip of water. He sent electrical charges through it and began to whip the wounded pegasus.

"THIS IS HOW IT ENDS RAINBOW, WITH YOU SCREAMING FOR YOUR LIFE AS IT SLOWLY FADES AWAY!"

Ammisive then transferred the built-up lighting to his right hoof.

"NOW… YOU… WILL… DIE!"

Before Ammisive fired his lightning bolt, Spitfire grabbed his hoof while the rest of the Wonderbolts restrained him.

"RUN RAINBOW DASH, YOU'RE THE LAST HOPE OF CLOUDSDALE!" Spitfire shouted, continuing to hold back the lighting.

As soon as this was said, the lighting was released, causing a large explosion to erupt underneath Ammisive and the Wonderbolts. Rainbow couldn't think as she darted off rapidly away from the scene. When she was far enough away, she looked back to see her home, completely destroyed and decimated by hatred and corruption. She cried as the words of Ammisive continued to ring though her head. Words that she would remember forever… "You've failed."


	15. Chapter 12 A

**_Notes and stuff: well ok, i'm back but I've noticed some problems with the fic if you already haven't The first thing is scene changes. For some reason the lines are not showing, so i will fix that soon. The other is Amisive's name, its actually Ammisive. Nothing to major. Third, the comment about season three not being included was not entirely true. I have only excluded the Trixe, Discord, and season final episodes...and any other episode that wouldn't make scene in the fic. One last thing, i have a new editor that is doing great so far. He's up to chapter 11.B with editing, i just need to re-upload them. _**

**_Reminder: there was some confution with the chapters i've posted two weeks ago, what i did was post two chapters at once. So if you havent read chapter 11. A please do so._**

Chapter 12.A : Forming the rebellion.

_One day after the battle_

"She flew off in that direction my lord…that was the last time I saw her." Amisive said, pointing with his hoof.

"So Rainbow Dash has gotten involved…she always was stubborn." Dark Fire said to himself.

_His horn started to illuminate faintly as he secluded himself._

"Do you two have any knowledge or eyes in the Everfree forest?"

"We had a castle there once…we believe it is still there." Nightmare responded.

"What about you Chrysalis."

"I might have a few drones there, I'm not sure though." She replied, doubtful.

"Then send some drones there for a reconnaissance then. Meanwhile, Nightmare will regain her castle and use it as a base. Those are your orders…uh, bye." Dark Fire said abruptly.

"Well that was quick, trying to be like me." Amisive smirked.

"No, I'm just running out of minutes and I hate horn calls. Aside from that, how could Rainbow make such a comeback so quickly? She should have been easy to take care of." Dark Fire said to himself.

"I hate to admit it, but Rainbow trash still has some tricks up her hooves."

"You underestimated her…but so did I. Regardless, we shall take the precautions and learn from our mistakes so it never happens again. Now, retrieve the prisoners."

"But sire, I ordered my army to take no prisoners…if we take prisoners now it would make me look bad."

"Silly Amisive, how would they be prisoners if there on our side?" Dark Fire chuckled evilly.

**Four hours later**

"So this is Cloudsdale…looks a bit out of shape." Stritin said out loud.

"That's because a battle happened here smart one." Castigate insulted.

"Celestia must have made this city after she over threw my father…it's kind of cool." Maneful said, joyfully.

"Do they have a bar up here; I could really go for something…strong. Other than that these clouds look so comfortable." Eccentric admitted.

"You should take your cowboy boots off Eccentric, the clouds up here can relieve lots of stress on your hooves." Amisive suggested.

"Well…I actually like wearing my boots, and cloths for that matter." He replied

"We've noticed, the servants have to string you down just so they can clean that leather coat of yours." Castigate remarked.

"You don't put leather in a washing machine though!" Eccentric yelled.

"Just try it before we leave…what's your opinion Desolent?"

_The dark green unicorn was off to the side, leaning on a cloud wall of a destroyed building with his hooves crossed._

"Looks like Celestia chewed up a bunch of marshmallows, spit them out, and called it art."

"Oh come on, your one of the first unicorns to set foot on Cloudsdale and your acting like this?" Amisive commented.

"It not acting, I just want to get this assignment over with so we can win the war faster."

"Is that all you think about, lighten up at least." Maneful said softly.

"I will when all that oppose me and Dark Fire are dealt with, now let's get moving." He said, pushing past the group.

_The other five ponies stared at him awkwardly as he trotted off._

"We can hang out later I guess…let's go meet up with Dark Fire at the coliseum." Amisive said as the rest of them followed.

_The coliseum was similar to that of roman culture where gladiators would duel…only ponified and made of clouds. Like __**everything**__ else in the city. Dark Fire, along with the elements, stood in the center while those captured were being forced in the stands._

"Is everypony accounted for?" Dark Fire whispered to Castigate.

"All but one…she escaped before she was captured." He replied confidently.

"I'm aware that Rainbow escaped, you don't need to-

"It was somepony else Dark Fire…our soldiers couldn't keep up with her."

_Dark Fire showed irritation as he sighed loudly._

"News of what happened here will spread rapidly to other cities…not that I don't mind. It's just that I wanted to take over Equestria quickly, not slowly and surly."

"I understand, so what should I do?"

"Continue your propaganda about us, put wanted posters our enemies and hire anypony to track them down."

_Castigate continued to write on paper as Dark Fire spoke._

"So what are the names of these traitors and their bounties?"

"Fluttershy, yellow coat with a pink mane and tail, two and a half million bits. Rarity, white coat and purple mane and tail…"

_Dark Fire listed off what he remembered of Night Shadow's friends and adjusted the bounty according to their threat level._

"And Pinkie Pie…twenty-five million bits."

"Twenty-five million?! Rainbow doesn't even surpass ten million!" Castigate said in shock.

"Trust me…you have no idea what's she's like, and the price for her capture is well deserved. Anymore questions?"

"No sire…"

"Then let's show these's turncoats a power to be truly feared. Take your place in the group."

_Castigate smirked as he teleported into the group. Dark Fire then cleared his treat in preparation._

"Fillies and gentlecoats…what you are about to witness is a power not seen for thousands of years! I am quite excited to see this power for the firsttime myself, and I'm **SO** glade I can share this experience with all of you! As your prince, this is my gift to you…GUARDS, BRING THE PRISONERS!

_The crowd booed and shouted hateful remarks to Dark Fire when he finished talking. Dark Fire started to laugh maniacally as his horn and hair burst into a bright red color._

"That's it, keep insulting me…your hatred only makes me stronger then before! It's the only think anypony has ever given me, and I love it!" Dark Fire said, drooling as more hatred was feed into him. "YOU ARE ALL IDIOTS, GIVING YOUR ENEMY MORE POWER, YOU WERE BORN TO SERVE ME AND ME ALONE! I think a demonstration is appropriate for you cretins.

_The guards soon brought forth multiple ponies in distinct uniform to the center of the coliseum. As quickly as the guards came, they left to keep the crowd in line._

"So you're the ponies that allowed Rainbow to escape…should I remind you of the punishment of defectors."

"You're the one that betrayed us, and you clam that your cause to control Equestria is for peaceful methods!" Spitfire yelled over the crowd.

"You were all under her spell and I will make you free from it." Dark Fire said, getting in her face. "And you can't do anything about it."

_Spitfires then spat into his face abruptly. Dark Fire got out of her face and laughed towards the guards and Elements of Disharmony. He continued to laugh as he wiped the spit from his mussel, turned away from Spit Fire before rapidly rotating back around, and back hoofing her across the face. The entire crowd and Wonderbolts gasped in shock when she hit the floor. Before she could get up, Dark Fire stomped on her back wings, making her cry out in pain._

"DON'T YOU DARE DO THAT TO ME AGAIN YOU LITTLE %# (&!"

"LET HER GO!" Soarin shouted angrily.

"WHAT GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO DEMAND FROM-?!"

_A flash went before Dark Fire as he saw another scene before him._

"Let her go…LET HER GO!" Night Shadow shouted as his eyes were flooded with tears.

_A loud bang was heard as the mare, that the all too familiar dark figure was holding, fell to the dirt…lifeless._

"She was weak Night Shadow, something I don't want to see in my child soldiers, if you fail to do my biding again…you will meet the same fate!"

"SHE DIDN'T DESERVE THIS, WHY DID YOU TAKE HER FROM ME?!"

"Your tears show weakness! I WILL NOT HAVE WEAKNESS!" The figure said, removing a black wipe with a spiked tip.

_When the flash back ended, Dark Fire removed his hoof from her and backed away._ _He then gave the signal the elements with the wave of his hoof. Desolent, and the others, put on their elemental necklace and formed a triangle behind the leader. Soon, all of their eyes glowed in a bright green color as black aura flowed freely away from the sides of their eyes. Their irises were then enveloped in a bright red as their pupils narrowed and dilated. They then started to float in the air as a gray bubble formed around the group._

"You chose to reject me, refuse my gift of freedom…now you feel what I've felt."

_Dark Fire smiled at the panicking crowd as a loud explosion occurred behind him. The elemental blast was almost similar to the elements of harmony, only this time it was a black and white rainbow. The rainbow shot into the atmosphere and enveloped Cloudsdale, soon everything was back to normal…except for Dark Fire. As he walked away, only some saw his eyes glowing purple as he had a grim look about him, it was almost…paranormal._

* * *

"She's been gone for almost two days, and you're telling me to calm down!" Twilight yelled to her friends.

"We're talking about Rainbow here Twi, she's capable of taking care of herself." Applejack reinsured her.

"And if something did go wrong, my Pinkie sense would go off." Pinkie said, smiling.

_Twilight closed her eyes as a tear formed._

"Night Shadow told me that Twi was his favorite word…" Twilight whispered, as she sobbed silently.

"You must understand that the past is the past…Night Shadow wouldn't want to see you like this." Enderpearl commented.

_Silence overcame the group before thunder was heard outside. They looked towards the entrance to see Rainbow weakly standing, wet, tired, and full of anguish. She took a few more steps in before collapsing._

"Rainbow Dash!" Everypony shouted in unison except Enderpearl.

_Pinkie ran towards her, with a worried look, and picked her back up onto her hooves. Fluttershy and Applejack quickly followed along with the rest of them._

"Are you ok Rainbow?" Rarity asked.

"What happened in Cloudsdale?" Applejack asked, comforting her.

_Rainbow shut her eyes and looked away from her friends._

"A better question would be what happened to her?" Endershine intervened.

"You can tell us anything Rainbow, we're your friends." Twilight said, recovering from depression.

_Rainbow slowly rotated her head with her eyes still closed. When she opened them, tears flowed freely off of her mussel._

"They won…they destroyed everything…I've failed." Rainbow said, crying loudly.

"It's going to be alright, you-."

"HOW CAN YOU SAY IT'S ALRIGHT?!" Rainbow screamed in anger before sobbing once again. "I saw my home disappear before my eyes, and you want to say it's alright…"

"Actually…It could be." A voice said from behind the group.

_They turned around to see a light green Pegasus with an orange and yellow mane._

"You have some nerve to come here and tell me this, Lightning Dust! Let me guess, you work for Dark Fire now and want revenge for getting you demoted?!" Rainbow yelled, angrily.

"No that's not why I'm here!" She stated quickly.

"Then why…WHY ARE YOU HERE?!" Rainbow screamed, pinning Lightning to the cave wall. "TELL ME!"

"I have information that you need to know about my brother, Lightning Flash!"

"YOU'RE HIS SISTER…I should have known you were related to that freak!"

"Please listen to me Rainbow…I'm sorry for what I did, but we can't hold grudges in a time like this."

"You're no better than your brother…your just a liar and a fraud!" Rainbow said, about to punch Lightning Dust.

_Rainbow was then hauled back by pinkish-violet magic._

"Stop it Rainbow, this mare come in offering us help and you want to fight her?!" Twilight ridiculed.

"Plus, I don't know if you haven't noticed, but these are dark times. I think Equestria has seen enough violence for an eternity." Enderpearl stated.

"I can't trust her for what she's done, don't you remember that you guys almost got hurt because of her." Rainbow said, attempting to reason with her friends.

"I've told you I'm sorry, why don't you believe me?!" Lightning Dust yelled.

"I believe you." Enderpearl said calmly.

"You don't know here like I do." Rainbow whispered aggressively.

"Well for starters…if she was evil, she wouldn't be able to enter the cave. This cavern is protected by a spell that won't let anypony of evil intentions in. That was to prevent Nightmare Moon from releasing me, and it also makes a great hiding spot."

"It could just be a trick…a spell to make it seem like she's good."

"Then I will look into that." Endershine said, approaching Lightning Dust.

_Lightning gulped loudly when she was mere inches away from her._

"Don't be afraid, I believe you…I just need to prove to Rainbow that you're telling the truth."

_She then placed her horn on Lightning's forehead. The horn then glowed brightly for several seconds before it stopped._

"She's telling the truth, there's even a surprise outside of the cave." Endershine said, surprised.

_Everypony walked towards the entrance of the cave to see a pony in a commander's uniform tied up in rope._

"I found him unconscious but severely wounded from what seems to be a lightning strike. He should give you the information you want." Lightning Dust said, smirking.

_Endershine then turned to Rainbow._

"Do you believe her now?"

_Rainbow let out a sigh before walking over to Dust._

"You might have everyponies trust…but I'm watching you. If you even look at my friends the wrong way…" Rainbow said, sliding her hoof across her throat. "You'll get it."

_Rainbow then walked back into the cave, leaving the other's outside._

"Don't mind her; she's been through a lot…poor thing." Fluttershy said timidly.

"I think we all have darling." Rarity commented.

"Anyways…I think it's time for questions." Dust said, yanking the gag from the commander's mouth. "What do you know about Dark fire's plans?! She shouted, slapping the pony.

"Tell us everything you know!"

_The dark pony opened his mouth to speak, but was slapped once again._

"I didn't even say anything!" The commander shouted.

"Answer the question!" Dust yelled, smacking the pony again.

_The commander looked at her angrily until getting smacked for the fourth time._

"I don't think that going to work darling, let a lady handle this." Rarity said elegantly, pushing Dust to the side.

_Dust groaned at her comment._

"Finally, somepony that can actually-

"WHERE DOES DARK FIRE HIDE THE CONDITIONER?" She shouted, slapping the guard like Dust did.

"OH…MY…GOSH, STOP SLAPPING ME!"

_Soon, everypony in the room was taking turns slapping the commander to get information. One hour passed before the commander started crying._

"I don't know what you want from me! Please stop hurting me…!" He said through his weeping.

"I-I'm so sorry, p-please don't cry, I didn't mean to hurt you." Fluttershy said, hugging the commander.

_The commander was now wailing loudly as Fluttershy comforted him._

"Well that didn't work." Endershine said casually.

"He wouldn't even talk to me…that meany!" Pinkie said, somewhat annoyed.

"He's still under the hatred spell, even if he's cooperating, he's still a threat." Enderpearl stated, returning into the cave."

"Well where are you going then?" Twilight questioned.

"The spring in the cave is sanctified and unadulterated…it will remove the spell from him if placed correctly."

**Five minutes later**

"Here, give him this." Enderpearl said, handing Twilight a glass of water.

"What makes you think he's going to drink it?" Applejack asked.

"I don't really know…but if he doesn't, just dunk it on him."

"Why don't we just do that?" Lightning Dust.

"It's not as effective." Enderpearl commented.

"Buck that!" Dust said, snatching the cup.

_She then tossed the glass into the guards face, shattering on contact._

"OWWWWW, MY EYES!" The commander screamed, still bounded by rope.

_Everpony looked at Dust in an agitated way._

"Ok, now I see why it's not affective…hehe."

**Another five minutes later**

"Here's the other glass." Enderpearl said frustrated.

"Let's get him to drink it this time." Endershine added.

"He's not going to listen to us now, we've practically broke every bone in his body." Dust exaggerated.

"He might listen to Fluttershy." Applejack said, gesturing to her.

_Her ears perked up at the sound of her name._

"D-do what now?" She asked, a bit nervous.

"You need to get that guard to drink this, Fluttershy." Twilight said, levitating the glass to her.

"I-I-I can't…I mean, I don't know if he wants-

"We're possibly saving lives here darling, do it for your friends." Rarity encouraged.

"O-ok…"

_Fluttershy took the glass and walked over to the guards. Getting eye level with him, she could tell that he was shaking with fear._

"You poor thing, are you thirsty?" Fluttershy asked softly.

_The guard closed his eyes tightly and nodded. Fluttershy smiled, causing a "squee" sound to be heard, and helped the pony drink the water. After being complimented by her, the guard's fur went from dark gray to white. Opening his eye's again, they we're no longer red, but bright green._

"I…I feel like a train rammed my head."

"You were under Dark Fire's spell…do you remember anything?" Twilight asked, curious.

"Dark Fire?" He asked confused.

"Dang it…I thought his memory would be-

"THERE GOING TO TAKE OVER EQUESTRIA!" The commander screamed.

"Nah really?" Dust said sarcastically.

"No that's not what I mean! Untie me and get me a map!"

"Whoa hold on…we still don't know if he's trustable."Applejack stated.

_Endershine, with her magic, disintegrated the rope around the pegasus. He then got up and ran into the cave._

"Well I guess he's a good guy now." Pinkie said happily.

_Everypony went back into the cave to see the commander and Rainbow setting a map onto the floor._

"Everypony gather around quickly."

"Is this a guessing game, I know what it is…IT'S A MAP!" Pinkie yelled.

"No…I mean yes, but that's not the point."

_The guard then placed his hoof on Canterlot._

"This is Dark Fire's capital correct."

_Everypony nodded._

"What has happened recently is the capture of Clousdale, setting up a circle and boarder of his kingdom."

"A what?" Twilight asked.

"He's extending his boarders, much like a power hungry dictator would." The commander stated.

_He then circled his hoof around the cities around Canterlot._

"This is all the land he controls."

"We already know this, how is this helping us." Rainbow said angrily.

"Because I'm about to tell you Dark Fire's plan to take over Equestria.

_The Pegasus waited several moments for the words to sink in. He then slid his hoof from Canterlot to Cloudsdale._

"This is the war path that Amisive, the element of Rage, is taking. It includes all land North-West of Canterlot."

"Do you know the names of the other elements?" Twilight asked.

_The Pegasus nodded happily before giving their names, race, and elements._

"Stritin will head north, Maneful to the North-East, Castigate to the east, Eccentric to the south, and Desolent to the South-west."

"What about the South-East and the West." Enderpearl asked.

"There's nothing much out there besides swamps and forests, but expect Dark Fire to take them anyways. He mentioned something about, "purging the land with fire", but Princess Trixie said-

"PRINCESS TRIXIE?!" Everypony shouted in shock before collapsing to the ground.

"What…was it something I've said?"

"Of **ALL** the mare's Dark Fire could have chosen…he chooses her." Rainbow said aggravated.

"I don't know why either… he saw potential in her and made her his apprentice."

"AN APPRENTICE!?" Everypony shouted again.

"I think Dark Fire fancies her or something."

"Wait…WHAT!" Twilight shouted angrily.

"Of course this was after he gave her the Element of Vengeance."

"ELEMENT OF VENGEANCE?!" They shouted for the third time.

"It's not official though, it's more of a symbolic title. Just like how Dark Fire is the Element of Hatred." The commander stated.

"Ok that one makes sense…but Trixie being an apprentice to anything doesn't." Twilight said, still trying to process.

"It doesn't matter…what Rainbow did in Cloudsdale showed that we have a chance to fight back! We just need you girls to lead the resistance."

"I'm sorry, but we're no generals here commander." Rarity commented.

"We're just six ordinary mares against an army…we have no chance." Applejack stated.

"I-I don't want to fight." Fluttershy whispered."

"Come on…you're the Elements of Harmony, you've single handedly stopped evil so many times to save Equestria, and you can and will do it again! Now who's with me?!"

_The guard extended his hoof out to all of the girls._

"I am." Rainbow said with confidence, quickly followed by Lightning Dust.

"I am to; they're not going to take my home without a fight!" Applejack said, smiling.

"Me three!" Pinkie yelled, bouncing into the group.

"It it means we can get out of this cave, then I'm in to!" Rarity declared.

"I'll do it for all the animals that Dark Fire will try to hurt!" Fluttershy said, boldly.

"For Equestria!" Twilight said, putting her hoof into the group.

_Enderpearl and Endershine then put their own hoof into the mix._

"FOR EQUESTRIA!" They all shouted, ready to fight for their freedom and liberty for all of Equestria.

_Twilight then walked out to the exit of the cave and looked to the heavens. As shooting stars flew by, she made a wish._

"And I also do it for you…Night Shadow."


	16. Chapter 12 B

**_Forgot to mention:_****_ Zepher actually belongs to the same friend the owns Enderpearl and Endershine. Things have just been stressful recently._**

Chapter 12 B: Judgment of a Princess

_Six months after fall of Canterlot and banishment of Celestia. Five months after formation of the resistance. Four and a half months of constant war across the land._

"Along with that, you now have the cities of Trottingham and New Filly my lord." A messenger stated.

_Dark Fire couldn't help but smile at the news._

"And how about Ponyville?"

"Discord has made it into the capital of chaos, nothing much gets out of there." Another messenger informed.

"Very well couriers, you are dismissed…and take the money bags with you on your way out."

_The messengers bowed happily as they made their leave. Nothing was left in the room but Dark Fire and his comfy throne chair. Looking around the room to make sure it was empty; he jumped out of his chair and danced joyfully._

"Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, YES!"

"What are you dancing about Dark Fire?" Trixie asked cheerfully, entering the room from the back.

"U-uumm…y-you didn't see that." Dark Fire said nervously, pawing at the ground.

_Trixie chuckled at his embarrassment._

"Ok Dark Fire…Trixie will grant you mercy only once."

"You are very generous, princess…how could I ever repay you?" Dark Fire asked, grinning as he bowed.

_They both started to laugh at their role-playing, and how cheesy it was._

"So did you sleep well Dark Fire…not that Trixie cares or anything." She said abruptly.

"Fine…how about you?" He responded.

"Good…Trixie still finds it hard to get used to eternal night…and the servants, and luxury, and pampering, and popularity, and-

"Yes, yes, I know, I know…" Dark Fire said, making her stop.

_Moments passed before the silence was broken again._

"Trixie wants to know what you were so happy about."

"What did I tell you about third person?"

"And what did Trixie tell you about fourth wall breaking!"

"I…"

"Trixie…"

"You do it first!" They both shouted at each other.

"NO YOU!" They both yelled again.

"EEERRRRR."

"You requested our presence Prince Fire?"

_Dark Fire and Trixie looked towards the voice to see the Elements of Disharmony standing their patently._

"We're not interrupting something are we?" Castigate asked, smirking.

"No, no…you came just in time."

"Well this better be good Dark Fire, my so called army gets sloppy after days without practice and they need to know who's in charge." Desolent said, angrily.

"That reminds me…lay off the punishments Desolent. I get more wounded soldiers from you area then I get from anywhere else." Dark fire said in a serious tone.

"Surely you know that failure is not tolerated." Desolent countered.

"Yes, but not when you punish your stallions for playing a card game."

"There is no such thing as fun in war!"

"There's a time and place for everything under the sun…or moon for that matter."

_Desolent groaned angrily_ _at his new orders._

"As for the rest of you…I called you back to witness something I have been planning for so long."

"What, are you going to ask somepony on a date?" Maneful snickered.

"NO YOU IDIOT!"

"Dark Fire…" Trixie said, staring at the angry pony. "You know how Trixie feels about your anger issues."

_He let out a frustrated sigh before rolling his eyes._

"I'm sorry…it's just that SOMEPONIES NEED TO-

"Dark Fire!" Trixie shouted over him, tapping her hoof on the ground.

"Fine, I'll calm down just for you…you happy now?" He pouted

_Trixie smiled happily, making her own version of a "Squee" sound. However, the Elements were too shocked at the scene before them to even move. It was enough to make Eccentric drop his cigar to the ground and Desolent to stare dumbfounded. It was almost unreal to them, Dark Fire, the prince of darkness and Equestria, taking orders from a mare._

"Now was that so hard?" She asked, rhetorically.

"Aside from the delays, I am happy to say that only six major cities-

"Five now, Vanhoover surrendered days before your message. The entire North-West is under now you control." Amisive said proudly.

"What about Rainbow Dash, that little twerp can hid forever." Trixie affirmed.

"She…got away…AGAIN!" Amisive shouted, silently cursing himself.

"Don't worry about it; she will forever be in hiding, removed from her home like you were. You got your revenge…enjoy it, revel in it, you have won."

"Then tell me…why does this victory seem so empty! So fruitless and void…what gain have I gotten from this?"

_Dark Fire was taken aback from his comment, not because he was shocked that Amisive would say something like this, but because he had the same thoughts before._

"Sometimes…doing the right thing will get you no gain, but actions speak louder than words. Your governor of Cloudsdale…isn't that what you wanted."

_Amisive shook his head in agreement, but his heart said otherwise._

"Now for the occasion, you are to meet me and the others at Nightmare's castle in four hours. There we shall await a very, special guest." Dark Fire said sinisterly as the others walked away.

* * *

"Get inside quickly." Endershine whispered to Rainbow.

_Nodding her head rapidly, she darted past the Alicorn as the metal door slammed behind her._

"Of all the places to escape…you pick a sewer?!"

"Ssshhh Rainbow…we need to get you out of Vanhoover." The pony commander said to her.

_This was the same commander that helped out after the attack on Cloudsdale. He had white fur with an orange mane and tail. He had bright green eyes and a cutie mark with three, horizontal, blue wavy lines stacked onto each other. This represented wind._

"I appreciate your concern Silent Wind, but you should know that I don't give up easily."

"Look, I'm the one that gave you Dark Fire's plan to take over Equestria, I know what his next step is…we need to go now!"

"Quiet both of you." Endershine whispered.

_Continuing down the sewer's tunnels, they heard the loud of marching ponies above them. It was enough to cause the tunnels to shake. When the sound dissipated, Endershine gave the signal to talk again._

"Dark Fire's army continues to grow and you want me to run?" Rainbow shouted in a whisper.

"Twilight assigned me to protect you at all costs…let me do my duties, please." Silent Wind begged.

_Rainbow sighed at the overwhelming odds against her._

"Fine…but you need to regroup the stragglers." She ordered.

_Shouting was overheard above as an ominous humming noise increased in volume._

"I'm sorry Rainbow…but in less than ten minutes, there won't be any."

"I can't just leave them!" Rainbow shouted.

"Remember, they can't win unless one of the Elements of Harmony is corrupted…I won't stand here and watch that happen." Endershine declared.

"This is why we must leave." Wind affirmed.

"I hate this…running and hiding like cowards." Rainbow remarked.

"We live to fight another day, now keep moving. We have about eight miles of tunnels before we reach the outskirts of town." Wind said, pushing forward.

"So why don't we teleport?"

"We would get traced Rainbow, didn't we discuss this?" Endershine asked.

"Darn it, I was hoping that was a joke, but apparently you weren't lying."

_Suddenly, a huge ringing went throughout the tunnels as an explosion was heard above._

"ENDERSHINE TELEPORT US OUT NOW!"

_She hesitated at first, but when she saw an all too familiar wave of red energy heading towards the group, she had no second thoughts. Grabbing Rainbow abruptly, she shielded her from the blast as it made contact and teleported the trio to the outskirts of the Everfree forest in a blinding flash._

"Are you ok Rainbow?!" Endershine panicked.

"Yeah, just dizzy from teleporting. What about you Silent…Wind?"

_Rainbow looked around to see the commander nowhere in sight._

"Now where did he-

_Before she could finish, a dark gray pegasus tacked her to the ground and stared into her eyes with his bright red ones._

"Silent Wind what are you doing?!" Rainbow panicked.

"FINISHING YOU ONCE AND FOR ALL!" He snarled, brining up his hoof over her head.

_Before he could strike, a magical bolt was shot into the corrupted Pegasus, knocking him off Rainbow. Before he could get up, Endershine uncapped a water bottle around her waist, and blasted the water into him with her magic._ _The pegasus's fur and eyes were soon back to normal._

"What just…OOOOWWW!" He shouted, rubbing his side.

"I'm really sorry, but you almost turned on us." Endershine said chuckling.

"Yeah, I almost had to beat you up…again." Rainbow smirked.

"At least you're safe, no telling what you would do under that curse. Let's regroup with the others before we're tracked down." Wind said as the others disappeared into the forest.

* * *

"Hey guys, there coming back!" Pinkie shouted excitedly.

"ATTENTION!" A voice shouted from nowhere.

_Multiple guard ponies then rushed out of their spots on the wall, formed two lines at the entrance, and saluted. The most significant of the group were the four commanders, two earth ponies, one pegesus, and one unicorn. The two earth ponies looked exactly alike, maybe because they were twins. They had light green fur, identical yellow mane styles, and brown eyes. They even had the same cutie mark of a war hammer. The only way you could tell them apart was because one of them flipped his mane to face the left instead of the right like his brother. His name was Vivum and the other was named Animum. _

_The Pegasus commander had purple fur with a huge, red, mohawk as a mane. His tail was red to, but it resembled more of porcupine on a bad day then actual hair. His eyes were light yellow with a target mark as a cutie mark. His name was Bluster Cloud. Lastly, the unicorn was red with light blue main and tail. This was also the same unicorn that attempted to fight Dark Fire with his firing squad. He had reddish-orange eyes and a drum with drum sticks as a cutie mark. His name was Shrill Shot and with Silent Wind, this made five commanders._

_As Rainbow and the others walked in, the guards still showed no signs of movement._

"At ease soldiers!" Silent Wind ordered as he walked by.

"By the look on your faces…I'd say you've lost." Shrill Shot guessed.

"Cut her some slack, she's been through enough." Wind said as he sat down.

"Haven't we all?" Bluster Cloud commented.

_Rainbow gave them all a stern look before retiring further into the cave._

"I'm going to check up on her." Fluttershy said saddened. "Pinkie do you-

"YEAH, LETS CHEER HER UP, RIGHT GUYS!" Pinkie shouted as she looked at the twins.

"RIGHT, SHES NOT GOING TO KNOW WHAT SADNESS IS AFTER THIS!" They shouted in perfect synchronization.

"AND THAT'S WHAT FRIENDS ARE FOR, RIGHT!?" Pinkie responded.

"RIGHT!"

"THEN LET'S DO THIS!"

"U-umm, could you keep it-

_They ran off before Fluttershy could finish. As she followed the trio, Applejack and Rarity caught up with her and disappeared into another cavern._

"I can never get used to those three." Twilight smirked.

"It's surprising how they can be so happy after all that's happened." Endershine said in realization.

"Well she is Pinkie." Twilight pointed out.

"True, true…but what of the rest?" Endershine said, pointing to the commanders.

_Just then a guard rushed in holding a poster._

"Commander…uh…however this concerns, I found this on the side of the road."

"What…let me see?" Shrill ordered, snatching the poster with his magic. He then read aloud.

'Witness the tormenter that has ruled over you all for so long, be punished and defeated at her own game and rules. A trial that will make history, a case that will stand the test of time. Watch as Celestia, the princess of hypocrisy and deception pays for her crimes by those that has suffered at her hooves for centuries. The event will be held near Ponyville, the capital of ciaos. Just follow the signs and light and long live the New conflagration Confederacy_.'_

"This is outrageous, how can anypony believe this!" Shrill Shot yelled, almost disintegrating the poster.

"Calm down, we can use this as an opertunity to strike back and-

"These ponies in power make me sick! How could anything serve them loyalty?!" Shrill shouted, cutting off Silent Wind.

"Get the soldiers together, we'll attack one of the occupied cities while there leaders are away!" Bluster Cloud avowed. "Twilight get the…oh no…"

_The commanders turned around to see that Twilight had vanished from sight._

"Endershine, call your brother here, quickly!"

* * *

"Do you remember what I've told you Zepher?"

"Yes Dark Fire, just give me time!"

"Time is what you should be bending, so don't give me that excuse!"

_Dark Fire and Zepher were in a dark room as they heard faint cheering from down the dark hall. Zepher horn was practically overloading with yellow magic that his horn was leaking pure magic and made the room flare wildly._

"Just…a bit…more!" He struggled.

_Zepher then put all he had into the spell until he collapsed onto the ground. Dark Fire then walked over to him and helped him up._

"It is done sire." Zepher said panting.

"Good…but I've just noticed that you look just like…me." Dark Fire said, walking over to the rune in the middle of the room.

"What are you saying Dark Fire?" Zepher asked confused.

"No, no…that's impossible, it could never be true." Dark Fire whispered to himself.

"Care to tell me what you're thinking about."

"It's nothing Zepher…just get the elements in here."

_Zepher then walked out of the room without another sound. Dark Fire then lit up the rune with fire as it glowed brightly. His horn then glowed bright red as his hair did the same._

"VESTRA NOTA SIT ITERUM IN MUNDO. UT VENIAT AD IUDICIUM PECCATIS TUIS POTERIT MALEDICTA! NUNC CELESTIA, VESTRI EXILIUM FINITA, REVERTIMINI, ET RENASCI SEMEL ITERUM PER INFERNI, ET ARDET!"

_The room shook wildly as a bright beam flashed into the rune. When it ended, all that Dark Fire saw was Celestia lying on the floor, almost lifeless._

"Get up, I know your faking your pain, trying to make me feel sorry. Your hopeless…don't try to hide it."

_Celestia struggled to stand but managed barely._

"It is you that is hopeless Dark Fire…and it is you that I feel sorry for, not I."

"Always one with sweet words the drip like honey, but it's nothing but a lie! You should be thanking me for speeding up your banishment. Sure it was a thousand years on the sun, but only six months here. If it wasn't for that, you would still be on the sun!" Dark Fire barked.

"I will never thank those that harm other ponies for selfish gain."

"Coming from a power hungry dictator that plants fear into ponies hearts!"

"Yet you declare war on my country."

"It's not yours anymore."

_The door behind then burst open, revealing Stritin and Eccentric holding cuffs and chains. Amisive and Maneful followed closely behind as the held the double doors open. _

"Is the prisoner ready?" Stritin asked.

"I didn't realize princess Celestia had returned." Eccentric said, a bit surprised.

"Don't address her a princess! She lost that title long ago." Dark Fire exclaimed.

_Amisive and Maneful looked at each other confused before looking back at Dark Fire._

"You could have told us that the prisoner was Celestia though." Amisive said.

"We would have come sooner rather than later." Maneful added.

"Silence, both of you…where's Castigate?"

"Yeah…about that."

"Whatever! Stritin and Eccentric, restrain the so call 'princess'! Amisive and Maneful, lead her to the trial room!" Dark Fire commanded.

"So these are the ponies that you manipulated into becoming the Elements of Disharmony?" Celestia whispered in sadness.

"How could you possibly know-

"Such cruel names…they don't represent any of you at all. The names you all bare now is just another way to torment yourselves with your past mistakes. You all put on this image of what everypony thinks of you, but none of it is true. You allowed them to turn you into what you are today, but deep down you're still the ponies that I know and love. Many of you do this because you're afraid of what might happen…but I've forgiven you, all of you. Don't become a nightmare to your own selves." Celestia said, meaning every word.

"Don't listen to this witch…she will do anything to deceive you to get free!"

"No Dark Fire…you're the one that has been deceived by your master."

"I've stood by Discord for as long as I can remember…he would never betray me like that." Dark Fire declared.

"Discord…was not always your master."

"Then who was…tell me!"

"Herus…"

_Dark Fire twitched at the sound of the name before exploding in rage._

"TAKE HER AWAY FROM ME!"

_As they carried her off in chains, Dark Fire struggled to even think after countless, faint memories hammered his mind_.

"How much do you know Celestia…nopony ever knows about that."

* * *

"Bets here, place your bets here! Will she burst into flames, explode or implode, or be sent into a black hole!? You decide as long as you place your bets here! Any is excepted, big or small, stupid or creative, we take them all!"

_Castigate was in the main lobby, collecting "bets" from ponies behind a stand._

"Hey you, the entre fee is fifty bits!"

"But I just paid at the front door!" The pony shouted at him.

"That was to get in the lobby, to see the show is fifty bit…now pay up!"

"That's so stupid…your just a frau-

_Castigate quickly removed his pimp hat before casting his spell on him._

"Never call me a fraud, that's reserved for my sister only. Now give me your wallet."

_The pony nodded happily before handing him all his bits and trotting off. Castigate then opened up the wallet and dunked the bits onto the table._

"Ahh I love the smell of stolen coin…bets here, place your bets here!"

_He continued this for five minutes before sitting down to take a break. Hearing a loud ruckus, he glanced to his left to see two yellow stallions, with a big strange contraption, making apple cider._

"That will be ten bits ma'am." The pony with the mustache said.

"What do you two think you're doing?!" Catigate yelled over to them.

"What's it look like we're doing." The other pony said, popping out from behind the machine.

"It looks like your taking my business, so beat it." Castigate ordered.

"We were here first so you should take a hike."

"Do you even know who I am…I can raise your taxes and make you bankrupted!"

"The better question is do you even know who we are?" The mustached pony asked.

"No and it shouldn't matter, you have about twenty-

_The pony then shoved his card into Castigate's face._

"I'm Flam."

"And I'm Flim."

"And we're…the Flim Flam brothers!" They shouted, doing their pose.

_Castigates left eye was twitching violently to the point that it almost broke his monocle. _

"I'm going to tax you into poverty!"

"Not possible." Flam smirked.

"Why not?"

"We're traveling salesponies; your power over us is inert." Flim stated.

"Then I'll make you go!" Castigate shouted, flickering his horn.

_Castigate casted the spell on them with no second thought. _

"Now that you're under my control… I command you to-

_Flim and Flam looked at each other before exploding in a fit of laughter._

"You're laughing? Why are you laughing?! You're under my spell!" Castigate yelled angrily.

"We're sellsponies." Flam declared.

"We're naturally deceptive and clever." Flim said, poking Castigate's nose.

"And these horns aren't just for show." Flam added.

"So scram!" They both said, using their magic to throw him back into the stall.

_They both laughed and then continued their work, acting like nothing happened._

"Those rip-off artists…that's my job!"

"You need help?" Stardancer asked, popping up from under the stand.

"H-how did y-you just-

"Don't ask…it's complicated."

"What we're you doing down under the stand?" Castigate asked confused.

"Ummm…nothing much."

_Castigate let out an annoyed groan as he continued to stare at the two salesponies. Stardancer, on the other hoof, was staring at the bits on the table._

"Sooo…not that I care or anything, but do you needany help?" She asked, reaching for the bits.

_Her hoof was instantly smacked away._

"Yeah, those two over there!" He yelled, pointing with his hoof. "There're stealing my business!"

"Well with a simple payment of-

_Stardancer's face was then abruptly hit with a money bag._

"Take care of them will…you."

_Castigate looked around for her, but it seemed as if she just vanished from thin air. She later popped up behind the, "Super cider squeeze 6000", and read aloud._

"Warning do not press…NOPE!" She shouted, bucking the button.

_The machine gave a good shake before exploding. Flim and Flam then popped out of the rubble enraged._

"Ok, who's the pony that pressed the self destruct button?!" Flim screamed.

"Why would you even have that?" Catigate asked, smirking as he sat down and placed his hind-hooves onto the stand.

_Meanwhile, behind the smoke of the explosion._

"Will you stand here for a moment?" Stardancer asked as she vanished.

"Umm, ok…why?" The pony asked confused.

_The smoke dissipated within moments, due to magic, leaving the confused pony at the scene._

"So you're the one!" The Flim and Flam shouted.

"What n-no i-i-I was j-just-

_This was all he said before multiple ponies tackled him. _

"Hi, I'm back!" Stardancer shouted, appearing next to Castigate.

"Yeah, yeah, it's time to go now." He said, taking the bits.

"What…why? We were just getting started."

"The trail starts in five minutes; I'm the overseer of it to make sure nothing goes wrong. So goodbye." He said before teleporting.

_Stardancer smirked as he vanished, taking out Castigate's money bag._

"That idiot didn't even notice I pick pocketed him. I'm just going to put this…in…my…

_She looked down to see that her own money bag was taken._

"Why am I not surprised."

* * *

_The walk was long, dark, and full of silence as the four ponies guided Celestia though the passage ways. The roaring sound continued to get louder and louder with each passing second. Soon, the light at the end of the tunnel made its presence known, and Celestia took the opportunity._

"Why do you obey him…Dark Fire? What has he promised you in return for serving him?"

_There were no words from the four ponies. There was, however, silent nodes and expressions from them._

"Revenge." Amisive said proudly.

"Redemption." Stritin whispered.

"Repayment." Eccentric replied.

"Rehabilitation." Maneful believed.

_Celestia said nothing until they finally reached the light._

"Is it what you truly wanted…or just a lie you've forced yourselves to believe."

"I've had enough of your talking! You think you're so perfect huh! THEN WHY DID YOU TRY TO DESTROY MY FATHER!"

_The doors then slammed open, revealing the full extent of the cheering and light. Celestia was the only one unfazed._

"Well look what we have here…a fallen princess with no scenes of honor." Castigate remarked, inspecting the prisoner.

"So you must be Castigate…tell me, does all that money make you truly happy."

"Let's just ask all the rich ponies who buy huge houses and throw big parties if money makes them happy." He said, sarcastically.

"On the outside they appear happy, but they put on a mask to hide their true sentiment."

"If money is so evil Celestia, then why do you have so much of it?" He countered.

"I never said money was evil Castigate…but the pursuit of wealth is. This is what you have done."

"And what about your determination for absolute power, is that not a sin as well! IS THAT NOT A SIN AS WELL!" He shouted in anger.

_He then took a deep breath and laughed it off._

"You almost got me there 'princess'…but sadly for you, this is where your reign ends."

_Castigate then signaled to the others to continue forward. Beyond the door was a huge arena like room surrounded by ponies that once served Celestia. Making her way to the center platform, ponies from all directions booed and threw multiple food items and objects at the princess. Celestia made and gave no gestures or responses to the ponies calling her names and throwing objects. In the distance, elevated above the action and crowd, were Stardancer and Trixie._

_While Stardancer gave a look of approval, she noticed that Trixie barred a look of sorrow. Her train of thought was broken however, by a loud whistle on the top of the platform. Turning to look, she was surprised to see a familiar dark green unicorn smiling wickedly at her._

"Desolent?"

"Yes…it's me…YOUR ONCE IMPRISONED STUDENT!"

_Desolent, out of anger, grabbed Celestia and threw her onto the platform. Before she could retaliate, he landed one solid punch to her mussel that knocked her back down. The crowd roared with endorsement at the sight before them. _

"How does it feel Celestia…to have everypony hate you for just who you are! To have everything you loved stolen from your own eyes! Well this is what we have felt at your hooves!" Dark Fire yelled from a newly placed thrown.

"If you think you can control Desolent then you're a bigger fool then I've thought Dark Fire!"

"I've had enough of your talking, it's time that we talk, and it's time for our voices to be heard! IT'S TIME FOR YOU TO BE JUDGED LIKE WE WHERE MANY YEARS AGO!"

_In a blink of an eye, Discord, Sombra, Nightmare moon, and Chrysalis appeared before her. Everypony then when silent as the Elements of Disharmony took their places around Celestia._

"I have already punished you according to your standard; but I shall be speaking for them on behalf of your punishment. Also, to make things better or for worse…

_Dark Fire gave a gesture with his hoof, signaling the former princess Luna and Cadence into the room._

"They too will be put under the same punishments…let the trials begin."

_Discord was up first, casually waving to ponies as he went._

"Hello, Tia and Lulu, how have you two been?"

_Luna glared daggers at Discord and took two steps forward before Celestia stopped her._

"And who is this?" He asked curiously, approaching Cadence.

"I know about your tricks Discord, you can't fool me!" Cadence affirmed.

"I don't have too, your Shining Armor is good enough little pony."

_Discord then conjured up two puppets of Cadence and Shinning Armor. _

"Oh, I'm Cadence and Shining Armor, and we're in looove." He said in a childish voice, smashing the puppets together.

"Discord, we don't have time for that!" Dark Fire shouted.

"You're no fun." He pouted.

"Now let's start from the beginning…you, Luna and Discord used to be close friends. You helped each other out in all situations no matter how tragic or devastating…then you decided to betray him. Destroyed the friendship that you once held on to with your life. Do you have any-

"We did what we had to; Discord was getting out of control with ciaos and hurting everypony around him!" Luna shouted angrily.

"YOU PUT HIM IN A STONE, LET HIM TO ROT FOR THE REST OF ETERNITY!"

"WHY YOU INGNORANT LITTLE-

"Luna!" Celestia said, raising her voice to silence her sister. "This is my trial, let me fight my own battles."

_Celestia took a step forward, affirming her presence to the accusers. _

"I imprisoned Discord not because I wanted the throne or power or money, but because of his actions. Before I was separated from my family because of the Alicorn persecution, I swore that I would protect and defend everypony that cried for help. Everypony that cried out for peace and an end of suffering and hate. What Discord did went against everything I swore to keep, and I was going to stop him…even if he was my friend."

"So you admit that you had no remorse or regret when you over threw your best friend?"

"Even though you may not believe, but when I heard of the grave news, my heart was broken. I gave him so many warnings before me and my sister were forced to use the elements of harmony on him. I was devastated when I saw him imprisoned; it was like losing a close relative."

"You must have really cared about him if you locked him up in stone and forgot about him!"

"That…was my fault." Celestia wispered.

"And so the truth flows." Dark Fire snickered.

"Even though I never forgot about him, I couldn't find an answer to change him from his ways. It ate away at my heart to see his stone statue in the royal gardens, thinking that it would be his final resting place."

"Then tell me this…why did you repeat the same process when he escaped his prison?! Why didn't you try to change him with your so called 'Friendship'?!"

"I thought that with the newly added element of magic that it would be enough to change him."

"Yeah, and we all know how that went. Surly you know that you can't force someone to become something new. This is what everypony calls free will Celestia, something you just don't get."

"So is this why you've corrupted everypony to serve you unwillingly."

_Dark Fire silently cursed himself for pulling himself into a loop hole._

"They were under your control first Celestia, I simply freed them from it!"

"Convince yourself first before you try to convince others Dark Fire.

"Regardless, the punishment you gave him was ridiculous. For somepony to claim and speek highly about the powers of friendship, this was a low blow. It shows what a hypocrite you truly are."

_In an abrupt flash, Celestia's right hind leg was turned into stone, causing her tail to fall limp._

"Unlike you Celestia, I don't turn ponies to stone…but Dark Fire does." Discord whispered.

_Discord showed signs of regret at the sight before him before returning to his place among the others._

"This is ridiculous, you're accusing us of actions we were forced to perform for the good of Equestria!" Luna yelled

"SHUTUP AND LEARN YOUR PLACE, SLAVE!" Desolent yelled, back hoofing her across the jaw.

"Thy wants to fight me, so be it you disgraceful-

"LUNA…peace." Celestia said calmly.

"That right, listen to your slave master little filly." Desolent laughed.

_Luna would have lunged at the mocking unicorn if it wasn't for Cadence holding her back, but only just._

"According to the time line, Sombra was next on your punishing list." Dark Fire said, reading from the book.

"You better have a valid reason too; my father was wrongfully imprisoned in ice and destroyed because of you." Maneful said angrily.

"Are you blind Diamond Rose, your father turned all the crystal ponies into slaves for his benefit. He practically destroyed the crystal empire!" Cadence informed.

"How do you know my name!? And how can you even say that my father enslaved everypony!?"

"I did my research on the crystal empire princess rose. You were sheltered so much from the outside world that you believed everything your father told you without question. Sombra lied to you about everything you know to be true."

"No…NO …my dad would never…"

"ENOUGH!" Sombra yelled over the crowd. "You will cease to tell your lies to my daughter, or I will throw you into the pits of darkness myself!"

"That won't be necessary my friend, she will pay soon enough." Dark Fire reinsured.

_Sombra felt uneasy as he stood in his place._

"So to back up my statement about you being a power hungry ruler, I shall tell Sombra's story. It begins when Celestia finding out about poor little Sombra." Dark Fire explained, taking out a Celestia, Luna, and Sombra plushy.

_Celestia, Luna, and Cadence stared in confusion._

"Don't worry, Hasbro wont bust my flank for theses…unlike some fighting game we all know about." He whispered towards you. "Anyways, there you were, doing what you do best…nothing. That was until that certain article in the paper showed up."

_Dark Fire, with his magic, manipulated the plushy to do whatever he wanted._

"Tia, that hot stallion called Sombra was just elected as king because of black pony month!" Dark Fire said, mimicking Luna's voice.

"I know right, he's like so cool and stuff…lets go beat him up!" He said, making his voice a high pitch to represent Celestia's.

_Everypony was now either laughing, blushing out of embarsiment, or just plain awkward. After ten minutes of randomness from Dark Fire's stuffed ponies, he concluded._

"OH NOSE, NOT THE COMBINED POWERS OF THE PRINCESSES!"

_After mimicking Sombra's voice, he made an explotion on the table, sybolising Sombra's defeat._

"Yay we won…DERP!"

"Well dur hur we won lupa Luna, we're jerks…and jerks always party! SYNCRONIZED DANCE EVERYPONY!"

"We never said any of this!" Luna shouted unamused

"Wait wait wait... it gets better!"

_Dark Fire then conjured the mane six, shinning armor, and cadence plushies. _

_Another ten minutes later_

"And that's how the crystal empire was made…THE END!"

"Even for you Dark Fire, this is stupid." Luna insulted.

"What, you don't like plushies!"

_Sombra coughed loudly as he glared at Dark Fire._

"Oh sorry…the point I'm trying to make is that you never tried to help or befriend Sombra. You just showed up and took over without a second thought!"

"You know for a fact that Sombra was enslaving ponies, I had to stop him." Celestia declared.

"Did you even try to save him, explain what he was doing was quote unquote wrong!"

"I sent him so many letters, so many warnings, but he refused my help or reasons. He sent my messenger ponies back to me almost insane, babbling about what they had seen there…what choice did I have."

"You didn't even try to talk to him! Just like with Discord, when he came back you didn't care or try to help! You just let your servants handle all the work, thus destroying his physical and spiritual body."

"It pained me to see him cast into that prison twice, but there was no other way."

"There's always another way!"

_Celestia's Left hind-leg was then converted into an ice pillar, immobilizing her._

"Nightmare moon…this is just self explanatory. SHE'S YOUR SISITER, AND YOU BANISHED HER TO THE MOON FOR ONE-THOUSAND YEARS!"

"She-

"Tia, we can talk for ourselves." Luna said to her. "We were still young, still ignorant, we felt jealous and unloved by our ponies. That is when she came to be." She said, pointing to Nightmare Moon.

"We felt thy pain to Luna, we just wanted to help, to show Equestria who the strongest princess was." Nightmare said with passion.

"It wasn't right, and my sister had no choice."

"Maybe at the time Luna, but did she ever visit you when you were on the moon. Try to talk you out of your believes. NO, she didn't, because she realized with you out of the way, she would have absolute power. No pony to turn to but her, she wanted you gone anyways, it was just an excuse to get rid of you for good."

"NO!" Celestia yelled. "If you think I'm horrible and a liar, fine, but please believe this. I was so close to finding a cure for her, but my research was always destroyed and sabotaged by those that wanted to see me suffer."

"A cure…from what?!" Dark Fire questioned.

"Miasma…it's a virus that travels in the air, through clouds, and anything imaginable. It's the most wicked magical energy there is." She explained.

"I've never heard of this before now, how do I know it's not just a lie like everything else you say?!"

_Celestia then pointed to Nightmare Moon with her horn and fired a bright beam of light into her left fore-leg. This caused Nightmare to yell in pain._

"There is your proof."

_Nightmare's left fore-leg was completely disintegrated, only showing a black cloud of smoke and shadow floating around where her fore-leg used to be. After some moments, the smoke and shadow energy reformed back into her fore-leg, as if nothing had ever happened._

"Why do you think she wants eternal night so much…it's because direct sunlight damages her. The Miasma is all in all just the same."

_Everypony was in a fit of rage and rebellion as witnessed Nightmare being hurt by Celestia._

"Silence everypony! Judgment will be made soon…then you can all witness her end!"

_Everypony cheered except Trixie, who in turn, stood and just watched._

"This doesn't feel right." Trixie said to Stardancer.

"Yeah I know…I paid forty bits for this?!"

"No that's not what Trixie means, she means that what Dark Fire is doing is…well…unnecessary."

"I don't care, as long as I get paid I'm fine."

"Do you ever think for yourself?!" Trixie yelled at her.

"No…thinking costs extra." She smiled.

"Oh Dark Fire, you selected Trixie to be princess over Equestria, but this isn't what Trixie had in mind."

"What's so bad about Celestia getting what she deserves?" She said, sipping on a drink.

"He plans to execute her."

_Stardance abruptly spat her drink into Trixie face at her statement. _

"Really, THAT'S AWESOME!" She said looking over the ledge.

_Trixie coughed loudly to get her attention._

"Oh I'm sorry, ummm, you want a sip?" She said, handing Trixie the drink.

_Trixie grabbed it with her magic and smiled; causing Stardancer to smile to before she threw it into her face. Staring at the unconscious pegasus, she noticed a black and green flash from the corner of her eye. When she looked, Celestia's right fore-leg was enveloped in black magic with Chrysalis taking Nightmares place._

"And now the last and most ironic case out of all of us, the changing invasion. This was was short but the most resent, excluding Sombra's second return. She had invaded Canterlot because she needed to feed off of love and to feed her army as well as her family. So surely of all places, if Celestia wasn't a hypocrite of course, Equestria would be the perfect place to acquire love. But what happened…I will tell you what happened, she exiled them out! Left them to starve on the outskirts of Equestria!"

_Celestia's last leg was then magically changed into that of a changing's._

"They needed love to survive, and you kicked them out anyways! These are the reasons why you are being punished, these are the reasons why you will suffer, THESE ARE THE REASONS WHY YOU ARE DEEMED GUILTY OF ALL CHARGES!

_Everypony, for the last time, cheered as they continued to insult and throw objects. _

"So this is how it ends Celestia…"

_Desolent was about to place a blind fold around Celestia's eyes until being halted._

"No…I want her to see this." Dark Fire said wickedly.

_He then whistled loudly with his hoof. Then a door to the right of Celestia opened to show Zepher holding a sword in his mouth. On his back was a heavily sealed black box. Walking next to Dark Fire, he levitated the box off of his back and busted off the lock with magic._

"Zepher…my son…what have they done to you?" Celestia said, almost in tears.

_He then spat the sword in front of Celestia._

"I'm assigned to execute you; it is a great honor to finish you off Celestia. After this there will be no question of loyalty to Dark Fire!"

"Zepher, wake up, you don't know what you're doing!" Cadence shouted.

"Shut up, both of you!" Dark Fire said, reaching into the black box and taking out a book.

"Is that…no… that book is to powerful for anypony to control!" Celestia screamed.

_Dark Fire laughed maniacally at Celestia's concern. _

"I can…and with this book, I control everything…I CONTROL ALL REALITY!"

_Wait…what!_

"That's right narrator…this book has the entire fanfic in it! With this I've become the ultimate ruler, and everypony will bow to me!"

"Only in your dreams Dark Fire!" Luna shouted.

"Now it doesn't have to be…"

_As Dark Fire opened the book, a dark feeling overtook all of Equestria, as if all hope drained from everything around him. After writing several moments, he closed the book and smiled. Luna and Cadence looked at each other confused before the abruptly hit the floor and bowed to the very pony they hated._

"Now watch your princess parish from this life."

_He signaled Zepher to pick up the sword and end the princess once and for all. There was no hesitation or regret in Zepher's face as he positioned the sword above Celestia's neck._

"Zepher, I just want to say that I'm sorry…I'm sorry for everything that's happened to you. It's all my fault. They took everything from me because I couldn't stop them. My kingdom…my ponies…my student…and now you. I have lost everything…so just end it already…I deserve it."

_As Celestia started to shed tears, Zepher's eyes started to flicker, showing his true eye color of gold instead of pure white."_

"Forgive me mother." He whispered, raising the sword.

"STOP THIS NOW!" A voice shouted from behind Celestia.

_Everypony stopped in shock as they witnessed the impossible. At the entrance was none other than Twilight Sparkle._

"Let her go…RIGHT NOW!"

_Zepher dropped the sword out of amazement leaving Celestia crying alone, but not out of sadness, but of joy._

"She's alive…I knew she was alive." She sobbed happily.

_Luna and Cadence turned around, equally shocked at her appearance along with everypony else in the room._

"Celestia, I've come to save-

_She was cut off by a sudden wave of fire erupting only one foot away from her. Jumping back in fear, she was grabbed by Shinning Armor._

"Big brother?"

"Yes twily, it's me…YOUR BIG BROTHER!" He shouted, punching Twilight across the face.

"W-what are you-

_Magical aura then enveloped Twilight, making her lose control of her limbs._

"Trixie hasn't forgotten what you've done to her."

"Trixie? Why…I thought we were friends?"

"You, a friend of the great and powerful Trixie…don't make me laugh!" She said as lightning shot out from her horn, making Twilight cry put in pain.

"NO, Twilight!" Luna shouted before Nightmare Moon pinned her to the ground.

"Luna!" Cadence yelled before Sombra did the same to her.

_During the ciaos, Desolent parted the wall of fire and walked towards the trio of ponies._

"Desolent, we have her restrained for-

_Desolent ignored Shining Armor as he forcibly launched him and Trixie into the pillars behind Twilight with wind blasts. Not caring who was hurt, he grabbed Twilight by the throat and held her by it._

"I knew you were alive Twilight, now I can finally absorb you and your magic and make it my own. Think about it…you will be part of the strongest unicorn that has ever lived. With that power, I can overthrow Dark Fire and become the absolute ruler of the world."

_As he said this, Twilight felt her magic and life fading away rapidly as Desolent's h__oof glowed dark yellow._

"And when that is all done, I shall throw the world into an apocalypse and destroy the world FOREVER!"

"NNNNNOOOOO!" Celestia screamed in rage.

_Celestia's imprisonment was then illuminated bright white as her bindings were shattered. Her eyes then glowed bright white as her entire body lighted up like the sun, blinding everypony that saw her. As Desolent laughed evilly, Celestia flashed by him and punched him across the chin, releasing Twilight from his grip._

"NO PONY IS GOING TO STOP ME, ESPECIALLY A FALLEN PRINCESS!"

_As Desolent charged up his magic, multiple explosions formed behind him, revealing the rest of the Elements of Harmony, the five pony commanders, Enderpeal and Endershine._

"You think bunch of colorful ponies will stop me!" He yelled, whistling loudly.

_Just then, the rest of the Elements of Disharmony came to back up Desolent as they stood behind Celestia. Dark Fire then walked through the pillar of fire, quickly followed by Nightmare, Chrysalis, Sombra and Discord._

"You can't stop us Celestia." Dark Fire stated, throwing Luna and Cadence before them.

_Desolent then backed up to regroup with the Elements of Disharmony. Meanwhile, Trixie and Shinning Armor blocked the only exit. They were still dazed from crashing into the pillars._

"STARDANCER, GET DOWN HERE!"

_As Stardancer landed on the floor abruptly, Dark Fire noticed Lightning Dust hogtied to her._

"This is your fault." Lightning Dust said, aggravated.

"You're the one that tied me up!"

"I don't care…you will all be obeying my whim after this!" Dark Fire said, opening the black book.

"Celestia quickly, while he's distracted."

"I can't Twilight…the book he has is to powerful, I can't allow him to unlock its full potential." Celestia affirmed.

"AND NOW…" Dark Fire laughed, flipping the pages.

"But I came to save you Celestia, I can't leave you again!"

"YOU WILL ALL…" He yelled, as his horn glowed to right words.

"You already saved me Twilight, you're our last hope…NOW RUN!" Celestia ordered, slicing the rope that bound Lightning Dust.

"SUBMIT TO DARKNESS!"

_Celestia turned around abruptly and shot the book out of Dark Fire's hooves. Before he could even react, Celestia unfurled her wings and caused a massive solar flare that blinded everypony in the room. When she knew that they had all left, she stopped her solar flare and surrendered._

"Be safe Twilight…your our last hope."


	17. Chapter 12 C

Chapter 12 C: Stalliongrad, the city of strength and iron.

'Two weeks have passed since Celestia allowed the Elements to escape. Not surprised though, these bad guys always get away until the very end, or at least that's what Dark Fire says. I don't get that blasted pony sometime, one day he wants justice and liberation form a so called "tyrant", and then the next he's trying to execute Celestia with her own son! Then he wants to say that we're the good guys! At least Amisive and Desolent admit that there evil. Why can't he?

Another thing that I can't stand is how Desolent won't shut up about Twilight. I can't have a decent conversation with the guy without his rabid talking about that mare. I made up for it though when I heard that Dark Fire's "magic book" had new "restraining order" due to Celestia's magic. The look on his face was priceless…his rage, not so much. I think the restraint had something to do with not being able to harm anypony or something like that. Anyways aside from my ranting, my army, or what was assigned to me, has been hammering this city nonstop with catapult barrages.

I just wish they would have used something else for the first week of bombardment. Come on though, who uses pillows and barrels for ammunition! I swear that the average IQ of a guard is equal to the objects they throw. Regardless, this city will fall just like the rest, and to think it used to be my home and my child hood…it wasn't much. Mainly colt labor in its huge metal factories and begging for your next meal. Caring iron ingots to and fro with nothing but a wheelbarrow with a flat tire. Let's not forget the constant yelling in your ear and prison riots. I strangely miss my home…I would appreciate it more if it wasn't for the fact that-

"Stritin, get your rump out her!"

-she was here.'

"What do you want now Stardancer!" He said, closing his journal and setting it next to a fire.

"Get me my coat!" She called.

Stritin applied his hoof to his face and slowly dragged downward.

"You have four hooves and two wings, GET IT YOURSELF!"

"You've been in that tent for hours, come outside, enjoy the wonderful cold wind and snow of a superb blizzard!" She yelled, sarcastically.

"This used to be your home to; you have no right to complain about the weather!"

"Who says I'm complaining?" She asked, walking into the tent.

"Then why do you need you blasted coat?"

"I didn't, just wanted to bug you, and it worked." She said, smiling.

Stritin gave her an annoyed look before he rolled his eyes.

"Whatever, I needed to inspect the city walls anyways." He said, walking past her and grabbing some binoculars.

After walking out of the tent, the first thing Stritin heard was their flag being whipped around by the harsh wind and snow. Seconds later, ponies were heard shouting the word "fire" to the catapult crews all around him. Along with this, soldiers were training, making armor, or just idling around and telling stories. Standing on a hill that overlooked the city, Stritin brought the binoculars to his eyes and watched. The full moon shinned above the city, but was sometimes eclipsed by black smoke rising from the pillars of dozens of factories within.

"Stardancer, tell the artillery sergeant he's off by ten degrees."

She smiled before turning around.

"HEY IDIOTS, USES YOUR EYES WHEN YOU AIM, YOU'RE OFF BY NINE-

"Ten!"

"TEN DEGREES…okay I told them."

"Yeah, I heard…sadly."

"Can I look?"

Putting the binoculars down, he roughly gave them to her.

"We're never getting through this city if we keep hitting the steel wall with boulders." He ranted to himself.

"You're too paranoid with weakening the city first, but a direct assault with our army won't do the trick either." Stardance said, looking at the patrols on the city wall.

"Then what do you suggest Stardancer, my army cant take this cold weather for long and our ammun-

"Hey, isn't that the pink mare that's part of the elements of harmony?" She said, ignoring Stritin.

"What…let me see!" He shouted, snatching the binoculars.

Looking through them, he saw a faint outline of three ponies deep within the city. The two behind the mare looked exactly the same and the mare was blurred due to her constant bouncing.

"Pinkie Pie…my retirement has come early, but how did she get by the blockade?"

"What blockade, the one that consists of three tipsy colts with sombreros asking for a donation?"

Stritin took the binoculars off and starred off into the distance before putting them back on again.

"Now that you mention it, that was a stupid idea."

"You should listen to me more often; us mares know what we're talking-

"Did Pinkie just wink at me!?"

"I don't know, did she?" Stardance smarted off.

Without responding, he put down the binoculars and continued to gaze

"Are you blushing Stritin?"

Ignoring her comment he walked by her and sat next to table with multiple maps and plans. Twitiling his hooves around, he sighed deeply before slamming his head into the table.

"I let it happen again…DARN IT!"

"What's the problem, so you get stiff necked when you see a mare, big woop."

Lifting his head, he turned to stare at her with his soulless, purple eyes.

"You don't know what's like."

"OHHH…I'm pretty sure I know exactly-

"-to be a stallion."

"Never mind then." She said quickly.

Taking a long pause, he abruptly got up and barked random orders.

"EVERYPONY LISTEN UP! Detachments one, four, five, and nine are to go around and attack the north side! Detachments two, three, and six are to attack the west and east sides! The rest of you, follow my lead…we will take this land for our own and crush all those that oppose us!"

As everypony accepted the orders and left, Stardancer grabbed Stritin and pulled him aside.

"Didn't I tell you that a direct assault wouldn't work!?"

"One, I didn't think you were that strong, and two, sense when did you care?"

"I really don't…but your idea is so stupid that I had to say something!"

"Well, think of it as an organized distraction…"

"For what may I ask?"

"For you." Stritin said, smirking.

"Why should I do anything?" She asked, leaning on a nearby tree.

"You're always board, you get to beat up ponies, you're paid to do this anyways, plus you always boast about your skills…so show me."

"You doubt me as well huh…that's will soon change. Tell me what to do."

"When the trumpets sound to charge, the catapults will fire one more round of fire balls at the city. You will be in this hollow rock and be catapulted into the city when this happens. In the confusion, you are to raise the steel walls from within while we distract everypony else."

"Sounds easy enough…" She said, putting her hoof out towards him.

"What, you want a brohoof?"

"No, I want my payment."

"You're kidding right, Dark Fire is the one that pays you."

"I'm doing your assignment am I not, then I require my bits!"

"Tell you what, I will buy you several drink if you succeed."

"Don't you mean when." She said, rolling her eyes.

"We will see about that…AND AS FOR THE REST OF YOU, BE READY, THE PONIET UNION DON'T KNOW THE MEANING OF SURRENDER! I hope you're ready." Stritin said, putting on the last piece of his old, lunar captain armor.

"Yeah, why not." Stardancer said, lounging in the hollowed rock.

"Ok then, just don't complain if the rock explodes in mid-air."

"Just light Tom on fire already!"

Stritin gave her a confused look before signaling the guards to light the rock. The trumpet then sounded, signaling the assault.

"Wait I just realized, I'm a Pegasus…I could just-

Stritin simply smirked before bucking the lever, catapulting her off into the mix of hundreds of fireballs. Watching the balls of fire ascend into the air, he put on his helmet, almost resembling a roman captain.

"ATTACK!" He commanded as hundreds of ponies galloped past.

Meanwhile, on the city wall.

"Pinkie…you have a visitor." A guard with a thick accent said.

Appearing though the doors was a large, brown stallion with orange and yellow hair. Only when they saw his hammer and sickle cutie mark did they know who he was.

"So you must be Joseph Stallion…I was expecting somepony taller." Pinkie commented with a smile. "I've heard a lot about you."

"Yeah, mainly involving your dictatorship." Vivum added.

"And your filly labor work force!"Animum said, angrily.

The brown pony chuckled, as if he didn't hear a word that was said.

"You have some very feisty body guards Pinkie…something I could use in my army."

The two twins growled at him while giving him angry glares.

"What are their names?"

"Their names are Vivum and Animum…but I call them Coco and Loco for fun. It's like a fun nick name that fits their personality so well! They're just like me Stallie!"

"Stallie?" The brown pony said with rising irritation. "Do you know who you're-

"General Stallion!" A guard shouted, entering the room. "The conflagration is advancing all around the city! What do we do, we're surrounded at every angle!"

The earth pony laughed darkly before giving the command.

"We do what we always have…take no prisoners comrade."

The pony nodded as he grabbed a torch and lit the line of gasoline that orbited the wall, creating a literal ring of fire. Pony archers from all direction they took positions along the wall and drew their bows.

"Take no prisoners?! Yo, are you mad!" Vivum said with concern.

"That's not cool dude!" Animum shouted in protest.

"Yeah I agree with coco and loco. We're the good ponies, we cant hurt others. There under a hatred spell, deep down there still the same ponies as before." Pinkie said, attempting to reason.

"Dark Fire and his army has done nothing but destroy and take! Why shouldn't we do the same?!"

"We're better than this, and hurting ponies isn't the answer."

"IT IS FOR ME! So you can either watch or leave…your choice!" He said, making towards the exit.

"We suggest you listen to the authority put above you!" The twins said in unison.

"By who, Celestia…I have just as much power as she does! She has no authority over me or anypony in Equestria anymore and what I say goes!" He yelled, slamming the door behind him.

"Come on guys, we have to act fast!" Pinkie said, slamming a huge bag of marshmallows onto the table.

"Pinkie…this is no time to stuff ourselves." Animum said desperately.

"She's preparing for when we get sent to prison…it's actually a clever idea." Vivum admitted.

"No you silly ponies, quickly put these marshmallows on their arrows." Pinkie said, grabbing a hoof full of sugary treats.

"This idea might just be crazy enough to actually work." Vivum said with rising hope

"Yeah, let's do this!" Animum shouted.

The two twins rapidly grabbed marshmallows and ran out the left door while Pinkie ran out the right. Following the perspective of the two twins, they had no idea what to do.

"Animum! What are we going to do?!" Vivum panicked.

"I DON'T KNOW, STOP ASKING!"

"WAIT I HAVE AN IDEA!"

Vivum then rapidly stuck marshmallows onto the arrows of one of the archers. He then turned around and gave him an aggressive look.

"What the hay are you doing?!"

"Uummm…nothing."

"I AM A HIGH CLASS OFFICER; I DON'T HAVE TO TAKE THIS!" He yelled, grabbing one of his arrows. "WHAT IS THIS?!"

"uuhh…well you see, that is-

"It's a poison thing." Animum said, filling in.

"Yeah a poison thing…it's a very poisonous thing…that poisons things."

Many pony archers were now getting interested in the conversation and stared at them.

"Oh really…what are they called?" He asked, with less anger and more curiosity.

"Uuhhh…there called…marshmallows?"

"NO YOU IDI…I mean yes! There marshmallows and we have reports that the conflagration's army is lactose intolerant."

The officer smiled before turning around

"STALLIONS! Get some ammo!"

* * *

Stritin came running out into the open field followed by his proud army of 10,000 earth ponies. They were mainly acquired through drafting and promises of freedom. The reason why was for the sole purpose of completely demolishing the city with brute strength. It was also calculated that Stalliongrad had a larger force then him. After all, the Poniet Union was known for their numbers in military. Looking up, he saw hundreds of fast approaching balls of light.

"ARCHERS!" Stritin shouted behind him.

Everypony stopped abruptly and allowed several large ponies with bulky shields to run past. Taking potition in the front, they raised their shields to block the incoming projectiles. Meanwhile, the ponies in the middle kept their heads down, knowing they had the most protection on their backs. Before the arrows hit, Stritin looked up to see a small colt staring up at the sight before him. Without thinking, he jumped out into the open and blocked the incoming fire with his body.

"You're way too young to be out here!" He yelled as arrows continued to pelt his armor.

Grabbing the colt, he dived right back into cover.

"I-im sorry sir…I just froze up."

"You could have been killed!"

"Stritin, what are your orders!" A random officer shouted to him.

"PUSH FORWARD!" He shouted, keeping the colt close to him.

Moving at snail's pace, they moved across the field towards the huge, steel wall.

"KEEP YOUR GUARD UP AND HEADS DOWN, AND THE WALLS WILL CRUMBLE!" Stritin ordered once again. "And as for you kid, you're staying close to me until we reach the wall."

"NO, I have to do this for my family!"

"You look like your twelve; you're too young to be doing this!"

"I'm actually eight."

"THAT'S EVEN WORSE!"

"I don't care! I have to do this!"

"Fine, but you're not leaving my sight!"

The arrows only increased in number as the army got closer and closer to the city gate.

"There not letting-

Before finishing, the guard was hit in the face by one of the falling arrows. To Stritin's surprise, there was no blood, but only what looked to be melted, white substance. Rushing towards him, he searched for his pulse.

"Good, he's still alive but unconscious. What the heck is this stuff though?!"

"Is that marshmallows?" The colt shouted, excitedly.

Staring in shock, he watched the colt scrape off the marshmallow and shove it into his mouth. Out of reaction, Stritin smacked the back of the colts head, forcing him to spit it out.

"Don't eat that! It's probably poisonous!"

After pulling the colt and shielding him even more, he gave more orders to the army.

'Stardancer better hurry up, or that drink is going to be mine.' Stritin thought to himself.

* * *

Stardancer came out of a store, drinking a forty ounce bottle of…is that vodka? Stardancer, you can't be doing that, come on!

"Oh hush, I'm not even your character…what was I doing again?"

Raising the gate for Stritin…

"Holy %#^ &*, I forgot all about-

JUST DO IT WOMAN!

Thirty seconds later

"Okay…so there are twelve guards at the gate, and the gate looks like it's made of solid steel. Great…" She said sarcastically. "Well, at least I will have some fun with this."

Walking out into the open, she whistled loudly, getting the guards attention. What she didn't expect was for the guards to line up horizontally in front of her, blocking the gate.

"This area is off limits, especially to mares." One of the guards stated.

"So that's why you stallions are so pent up all the time…you have nothing to relive your stress with." She said seductively, swaying as she approached.

The guards continued to give her poker faces.

"So honorable, guarding this huge door with your big muscles and bodies…so selfless." She whispered, getting into a guards face. "Getting all sweaty in all that armor, working so hard…I bet several minutes with a mare can't hurt you… or several hours. I bet all of you just want to take me and-

"We're not amused by your seductiveness mare. Such acts are treason!" The guard shouted.

"Right then!"

Stardancer, in the blink of an eye, punched the stallion straight into the gate. All the other guards got out of position and blocked off the gate from her.

"Maneful said that would work to…but nooooo, I had to get the homo group!"

"You're going straight to the coal mines after this…mare." The guard affirmed, in a dark voice.

Stardancer smiled as her wings unflared. She then lowered her head and looked to the ground.

"This will be the only time I tell you. My name…is Stardancer!"

The last thing the guard saw before blacking out was her eyes dilating and her wicked grin.

* * *

"THE GATES ARE OPEN!" One of the ponies shouted.

"CHARGE!" Stritin ordered.

Without any hesitation, the soldiers flooded the entrance, engaging into mini skirmishes with the ponies inside. Stritin, being one of the last to enter, rushed in and pulverized several ponies that got in his path. Stopping to make sure the colt was near him, he overlooked the city that once was his home.

"So how was that?" Stardancer commented from a corner.

"Close…very close." Stritin said, picking up the colt and putting him on his back.

"Stritin…I didn't know you were a foul sitter."

"…Shutup."

"What's his name anyways?" Stardancer asked with curiosity

"Never asked…what's your name kid?" He said, looking back at him

"Bright Spot, sir." He answered shyly.

"Bright Spot huh…that's a strange name."

"Well if I was in bright daylight, you would understand why sir. The white spot on my back shines in daylight, along with my yellow fur."

"Your red mane doesn't help either…this makes you very noticeable at night. Regardless, you are to stay close to me at all times and avoid any enemy contact!" Stritin commanded, prepping himself. "We're about to make a one way stop to the cities center and there can be no slip up's…got it?"

"Yes sir." He stated, confidently.

"Stardancer, open the gates for the other passageways, we need their combined efforts to win."

"Fine, but you still owe me that drink." She said, darting off.

"Hang on kid, this is about to get rough."

Stritin reared up onto his hind legs before taking off, deeper into the heart of Stallingrad.

* * *

"What do you mean they got in!"

"Forgive me stallion, but they had too many forces."

"TOO MANY FORCES! Their numbers should have cut in half at the gate!"

"I know sir, but…but-

"I've heard enough!"

The angry leader than signaled the ponies behind him to grab the soldier.

"No, no, you can't do this, I have three starving children!" He begged while being restrained.

"You should have thought of that before you ran like a coward! TAKE HIM TO THE MINES!"

As the ponies dragged the new "worker" to the mines, they were stopped by Pinkie.

"You can't do that to him, he has a family!" She said, taking his side.

"And why should I listen to a pink pony with pudding on her head!" The dictator argued.

"That's Chancellor Puddinghead to you!"

"I don't care what position of power you have! What I say goes without question!"

"That's because everypony only listens to you because they fear you, not because you're a great leader!" Vivum shouted aggressively.

"THAT IS IT! GUARDS, I WANT THESE THREE PUT IN CUSTODY FOR TREASON!"

"WHAT!" Both commanders shouted.

Pinkie simply stood there, amazed by how a pony could be so heartless.

"AND WHEN WE WIN THIS, I WANT THEM PERSONALLY EXECUTED!"

Thunder cracked above them as the flash of lightning illuminated the group for a split second. It was the same moment everypony turned around to see Stritin standing proudly in the center of the group.

"So you must be the director of this little act that you've put on." The dictator commented

"And you must be Joseph Stallion…the most ruthless dictator in the north. It's amazing how Celestia never shut you down." Stritin added.

"She was only interested in containing our greatness here!"

"You mean your stallionism!"

"You're one to judge…spreading the ideas of the conflagration around…signing false treaties.

"I forgot all about that…Lord Fire sends his regards!"

"SEIZE HIM!" Stallion ordered.

The four guards around there leader made a slow and precautious walk towards Stritin. Withdrawing hoof-cuffs and shock batons, they surrounded the large earth-pony.

"I want him to suffer." The dictator whispered, under his breath.

"Hang on Bright Spot." Stritin said, continuing his stance.

The four ponies lunged at Stritin, pulling him to the ground. With the ponies still on him, he got back up on his hooves, acting as if they where weightless.

"Your ponies are like sticks…easily breakable and worthless."

Without any effort, he bucked the two ponies behind him off and knocked the pony around his neck unconscious. The last pony quickly got off and swung at Stritin with his baton, only for it to be grabbed by him.

"Aren't you a bit too young to be playing with toys?" Stritin whispered evilly.

"The baton…you should be paralyzed!" He screamed in terror.

"It was your very nation that thought me how to resist…"

Snatching the shock baton from his hooves, he quickly flipped it around and bashed it across his head.

"It would seem you didn't learn the same."

Dropping the baton, he looked up towards the dictator and gave him terrifying glance.

"You're next."

Almost out of panic, Stallion signaled for the one-hundred ponies in the area to surround Stritin.

"Now it your turn." Stallion whispered.

"Bright Spot…take cover behind those rocks and don't look up until I say so." Stritin said, grabbing the colt and putting him down.

"b-but I want to-."

"DO AS I SAY, NOW!"

As the colt run underneath the guard's legs and took cover, Stritin eye's darkened as a murky purple aura enveloped him.

"That's right…keep on gawking at me…it will be the last think you see with your sanity."

The two twins continued to stare until they realized what Stritin was trying to do.

"PINKIE, LOOK AWAY!" They shouted, grabbing her and taking cover.

"TERROR CANNON!"

At that same moment, Stritin stood up onto his hind hooves and left out dark purple energy wave that striked horror into their minds and hearts. From their point of view they saw Stritin, in front of a dark purple black hole, taking upon their worst fear. All one-hundred guards could do nothing but run away screaming or faint from fright. Even Joseph Stallion, as strong willed and stubborn as he was, couldn't resist as he abandoned his allies.

"Now there's nothing to stand in my way from obtaining what is mine!"

"You forgot one thing Stritin!" Animum said, getting up

"More like two!" Vivum added.

"But there's still player on the field!"

"That are still willing to fight!"

"For freedom!"

"And Equestria!"

"AND THAT WHY WE'RE GOING TO KICK…YOUR…FLANK!" They both shouted, charging at Stritin with full speed.

The dark blue pony though none of it when they attacked, thinking they would fail just like the rest. When they made contact with their hooves though, he was amazed that they we're almost as strong as he was, resulting in an abrupt crash into the dirt.

"Well, this is going to be harder than I though." He said, getting back up.

The two twins nodded to each other before running at him once again. Only this time, they split up before reaching him, practically forming a parabola before making a sharp turn towards him and bucked Stritin from both sides. Without wasting a second, the twins mirrored each other's movements and delivered multiple punches to Stritin's face, chest, and stomach. After realizing what was going on, Stritin stopped and grabbed both of the ponies' hooves.

"Fighting me is like trying to move a mountain…YOU CANT WIN AGAINST ME!"

With this said he picked up the two twins by their hooves and threw them into separate buildings. Animum recovered before vivum and attempted to attack Stritin without his partner, but only got jabbed in the stomach and thrown into a cart. It was then Stritin realized that these's ponies were easy to fight in one on one combat. As the fight continued on, Pinkie could only stare until she heard a thump behind her.

"So you must be Pinkie Pie…heard a lot about you." Stardancer said, stepping over the newly captured and gagged Joseph Stallion.

"And your Stardancer…you're twenty-fifth birthday is coming up soon!"

"How do you…nevermind." She said, sitting next to her. "Sooo, you want to bet on who's going to win?"

"Noooo… I already know who will win, so it's unfair." Pinkie said joyfully.

"You're no fun." She pouted. "But how did you find out."

"It's easy; the narrator is pulling the old 'you think you've won but actually lost' tactic."

"Really...i don't get it."

"Yes…it's getting so predictable, just watch."

Stritin and the two brothers continued exchanging blows, some hitting their armor and others hitting their flesh. This lasted for minutes until the two commanders overwhelmed Stritin with their attacks, eventually bucking him into a building, causing it to collapse.

"Holy Celestia, did we just…you know." Animum said, concerned

"You mean Luna." Vivum corrected.

"No, I mean Celestia!"

"Luna!"

"CELESTIA!"

"LUNA!"

As the commanders bickered, Stritin slowly got up from the rubble, enveloped in dark purple aura, and let out a blood thirsty roar. Before the brothers could react, they we're punched across the face and endured the worst beating of their lives. After being punched and bucked to the point of blacking out, Stritin lined up the two commanders and smashed them out of their armor in one, strong, hit.

"See what I mean." Pinkie remarked.

"Now surrender Pinkie and make this easier on yourself! Somepony want his twenty-five million bits!"

"SHE'S WORTH TWENTY-FIVE MILLION BITS!" Stardancer screamed, latching onto Pinkie.

Stritin eyes widened, realizing what he had just said.

"NO THAT'S NOT WHAT I SAID, I SAID…I said…ah horse apple."

"Then she's mine!" Stardancer said, attempting to grab Pinkie.

"We're support to be on a mission!"

"Nooo…you're on a mission, I'm just here to do whatever I want!"

"YOU CANT DO THIS TO ME!"

"Yes I can, you're not paying me anyways."

"OH MY GOSH MARE, LISTEN TO ME!"

"By the way, she's getting away."

Stritin quickly turned around to see Pinkie performing C.P.R on the two unconscious commanders.

"CLEAR!" She shouted, rubbing her hooves together and slamming them into the Vivum's chest.

"GET BACK HERE, MONEY!" Stritin shouted, running towards her.

"I wouldn't do that if I we're you." Stardancer advised.

Ignoring her warning, he lunged at the pink pony, only to get a face full of pink before slamming his head into a brick building. Rubbing his head in pain, he attempted to get up, but only hit his head again on a falling plank, knocking him unconscious.

* * *

An unknown amount of time later.

"Stritin, wake up." A familiar voice said to him.

When he opened his eyes, he saw Dark Fire with a large cloak surrounded by Trixie, Chrysalis, Nightmare, and others that he recognized.

"Congratulations on taking over Stalliongrad…unfortunately, Pinkie got away."

"It's nothing really…I'm just wounded though."

"We'll take care of that soon enough. Discord, see if you can patch up the city of any damage!"

"I'm going to add my own twist to It though, this town could use a bit of chaos." He said, disappearing.

"Nightmare…heal him up will you."

Nightmare nodded before enveloping Stritin with her magic. As this happened, he glanced over to the left to see Trixie shivering from the cold. Not long afterwards, Dark Fire took off his clock and covered her with it, hugging her in the process. As if to break the moment, the prisoner was brought forth by Sombra and Chrysalis.

"So it looks like the rat is caught in his own trap." Dark Fire taunted.

"You betrayed us…broke you're agreement…"

"It was only temporary…doesn't that ring a bell Joseph?"

"By Celestia's mercy, you will burn for this."

"You…of all ponies should know that you declined her offer for alliance. She won't be giving you any grace for your actions. All in all they can agree to one thing…agree that I am their prince."

"You're no prince!"

"And you're no leader."

The elements of disharmony assembled behind Dark Fire, emanating a faint white noise before it increased in volume.

"Now…bow before me..."

**_In my opinion, this wasn't my best work so yeah. Other than that i have changed around the italics on narrative speaking so it looks like the edited versions. I'm also thinking about telling you what the next chapters title would be, kind of like in anime or something like that. Oh well, P.M me if you wish. Um, for those with xbox live, my name is comando 954 for those that might want to play anything._**


	18. Chapter 13 A

_**Credit where needed: I had a friend help me with Chapter 13 A and B, so the writing style is different. However, even though he typed it out, i approved the work. A little heads up, it's quite confusing at first, but it makes scenes after you read it. **_

Chapter 13A: Pen Mightier Than The Sword

On a train heading towards Canterlot, Castigate had his right foreleg elbow rested on the side of the window. He watched as his units fill the streets of Baltimare. A smirk formed on his muzzle as he looked at the seat a few feet with him. A brown suitcase was laid on top of the red cushions while leaning to the side on a wooden wall. He flipped his mane to the side and hopped off the seat, then started heading towards the door. Once he got to the door, he closed it so no pony could bother him. Going back to his seat and sitting in his usual position, he couldn't believe how easy it was to take over two cities in one day. He didn't need to waste a second in doing so as he got two of the leaders of the cities to surrender.

'Is everything ready, Blue Asphyx?'

'Yes, sir, we have everything set up.'

'Good, now let's see if those rats can stop me now. Let's proceed as plan.'

'I'm not sure it would be a good idea, sir. What if it doesn't?'

'Don't worry, it will. My ways in winning are always successful. We will both get out of this alive.'

Castigate slowly closed his eyes falling asleep. As darkness engulfed his vision, the sound of the moving train faded away. His hearing dubbed out the roaring engine and raised the sound of his heartbeat. Soon, the heartbeat began to fade away leaving only silence to take over. When he opened his eye, he could hear a strong ringing noise echoing through his eardrums as crumble stones and rocks laid by his side. Getting up from the mud beneath him, he looked around feeling dizzy and confused. A group of resistance up ahead in a barricaded fort were firing magical blasts of water at his units. To his side, a cloak pony was grabbed him and started dragging him to the side as he watched his own men get hit by the blasts of water.

Looking up at the pony that was dragging him was young looking stallion. His hood fell off revealing his dirty green coat and black mane and also his faded blue eyes. The stallion's mouth moved up and down while looking ahead but Castigate couldn't hear those words for the ringing noise dubbed out all of the other noises around him. He could see dangling lanterns from the ceilings and pipes leading straight and back. He closed his eyes allowing the darkness to take over his vision again, but in return the ringing noise stopped and allowed the other noises around him to slowly come back to him.

"Barricade that door!" The young stallion yelled laying Castigate on top of a wooden table. Around him were medics treating other injure soldiers.

Two ponies closed a steel door leading into their large room which looked somewhat like a Custodian lounge. The stallion that pulled Castigate all the way to the room glanced at his fallen commander.

"We need a medic!" He yelled after spotting a large piece of rebar lodged in the side of his stomach.

Blood slide down the sides of the wound as Castigate was breathing slowly at a dangerous rate.

"Where can I get a dang medic!" He yelled grabbing the rebar and Casitgate's chest, trying to ease down his breathing.

"I'm here, is that the commander?" A medic guard asked.

"Yeah, help me get this out of his stomach." He said grabbing the sides of the rebar as the medic quickly held down Castigate's shoulders.

"Ready?" He said, looking at the medic who nodded his head.

When the stallion pulled the rebar out he quickly dropped the bloody metal and pressed his hooves against the commander's wound. Castigate, held down by the medic, yelled out in pain before coughing out blood.

"Quick, we need to stop the bleeding." He said as the medic let go of Castigate and took out a blanket from under the table.

He quickly pressed against the bleeding wound and looked at the stallion.

"We need to disinfect the wound before it gets infected. Hold him down for me as I applied the alcohol." The medic said.

The stallion nodded his head and quickly trotted behind Castigate and held down his shoulders.

"W-what happened?" Castigate asked in an agonized tone.

"You can't talk now, save your breath and worry about breathing." The stallion said as the medic poured alcohol into a clean towel and removed the blood soaked one.

He pressed it against Castigate's wound causing another yell to escape his mouth.

"Just hang in there, we stopped the bleeding, now we need to disinfect the wound."

"It freaking hurts!" He yelled trying his best not to move.

"I know." The stallion said as the medic removed the towel.

He glanced at the stallion and smirked.

"I am going to sew up the wound, just hang in there commander, we are almost done." The medic said laying the towel down.

He took out a sew and needle and carefully attach the dark strings to the needle's loophole. As he started sewing the wound up, Castigate breathing started relaxing as the pain was residing. His wound was numb by the alcohol.

"What happened?" He asked slowly taking careful breaths.

The stallion glanced at him and sighed.

"As we were proceeding to the mayor's building through underground. It appeared that they knew of our plans and had us ambushed. They blew up passage behind us and the explosion trapped most of our troops on the other side who were now left to fend for themselves. The passage we were on was probably worse than theirs. They had a fortified barricade ahead of the sewers and were gunning out our soldiers left and right. The water knocked a lot of them out. For you, you were hit hard by a blast of magic knocking you back into some debris. That's where you got that piece of metal lodged into your stomach."

"How...the plan was well made. How did those fools figure it out?" He asked shocked.

"Trust me, I don't know. I wish I did though." The stallion said.

"Sir, the wound is done. I suggest you be carried out through the exit to the hospital, the exit back to the sewers aren't looking so good." The medic said after he finished the final piece to sealing the wound up.

"Darn it, alright Blue, can you carry me out of here?" Castigate asked.

"Yeah, medic, get as much soldiers as you can and tell them to fall back. After that, destroy this room and our escape passage. We don't need any followers as it is." Blue said looking at the young silver coat green eye medic.

The medic looked back and frowned.

"Negative, I'm sorry sir." He said causing shocked expressions to form upon their muzzles.

"What do you-

"What I mean sir is...we are going to hold them back. Even if we destroy the passage, they will know where to find you. We will hold them down to the end." The medic said.

Castigate looked left and right at his fellow soldiers who gave him the same expressional answer the medic gave. They were not leaving, they were going to stay and fight, providing time for him to escape to safety.

"You are all crazy, you know that right?" Castigate asked smirking.

"We know that, sir, now go, we will hold them down." The medic said as Blue lifted Castigate upon his back.

"May Darkfire's honor be bestowed upon you all for your courageous valor." Castigate said as Blue got to the exit.

"No, sir, Lord Darkfire's honor won't mean anything to us, it is your safety and honor that makes us want to fight. It's been an honor." The medic said closing the steel door.

Blue lowered his head before looking up ahead at the dark tunnel passage ahead of him.

"Hang on, sir." He said as Castigate nodded his head, holding tight to his neck.

Castigate continued to look back at the steel door that was becoming too small to see. Eventually, the darkness shrouded him and his vision but the sound of hooves running on water was heard.

"We need to end this now, I need to figure out who gave these rats intel on my plan and we need to find the mayor and force him if necessary to surrender." Castigate said as he struggled standing on to the ground while holding onto the side of the bed.

They finally made it to hospital and while that, blew up the passage behind them. Right now, they were inside an engine room. A few soldiers guarded the entrance while Blue helped Castigate walk towards the large map of the city pinned to a bulletin board.

"Right now, we need to know how we are going to win with a wound like that." Blue said, setting him down by the side of the wall.

"I'll be alright for a week. I just need to not run a lot." Castigate said patting his wound gently.

"So, who do you think betrayed us?" Blue asked sitting down next to him. He took out a cigarette from his cloak pocket and a lighter. Flicking the lighter, he lighted up the cigarette and took whiff. Castigate looked at him shocked.

"What are you doing?" He asked abruptly.

"Smoking a cig." Blue answered calmly.

"You shouldn't smoke that here." He said.

"And?" Blue asked looking at him with an apathetic expression. "I haven't smoke in two weeks during this operation, so lay off." He said taking another exhilaration from the cig.

Castigate sighed looking up at the ceiling.

"We are so close." He said looking at Blue smiling.

"Are we?" He asked looking at the ceiling.

"What do you mean?" Castigate asked looking at him confused.

"Are you okay, sir?" One of the guards asked causing Castigate to look at him surprised.

"Yeah, just a wound, nothing to worry about." He answered as the guard look at him worried before turning back and proceeding back to his regular position.

"Time is wasting away, soon the cold will brush over and our chances in taking over this city would be impossible. These ponies are the masters of the cold night. After all, this is by far one of the cities called-."

"I know, I think I have an idea." Castigate said causing Blue to look at him with an expression of amusement.

"And what is this plan?" He asked.

"The rooftops, they are all consistent on staying in the sewers and streets that they are not aware of their rooftops being open. If we can travel two clicks to the north, we could reach the mayor's building." Castigate said smirking.

"That way, not only will we be able to take over Baltimare, we will be able to take over Fillydelphia because the mayor from that city is there. It is nice how we interrupted a national holiday for those two cities." Blue said squishing the cigarette to the ground. He got up and helped Castigate up. "So...what are we waiting for, sir, do you need my help getting you over the rooftops?"

"Yeah, if we encounter some that aren't that far away from the rooftop that we are standing on, I could jump across there. Just make sure you catch me just in case I slip." Castigate said, earning a soft chuckle from Blue.

"I'll be sure not to have you slip from my grasp." He said helping him towards the exit.

"Hopefully this plan would not fail like the last one." Castigate muttered.

* * *

Castigate's eyes suddenly open feeling cold air brush through his coat. He looked left and right panicking as he fell to his side. It was raining outside and he was on the ground covered in bruises. Next to him was the ceiling window that led inside to the office room of the mayor. But as Castigate struggle getting up from the ground he glanced to his left seeing a large bulky stallion with a jet black color main and dark eyes standing over Blue, beating him senseless by swinging his hoof left and right colliding it towards the sides of his face. Blue was unable to defend himself as he coughed out blood from his beaten face.

"B-Blue..." Castigate muttered holding on to the side of the ledge of the building before he ran towards the large pony, tackling him to the ground. But the tackle caused them to slide on the wet floor right off the roof. Castigate fell to the side quickly grabbing the ledge struggling to pull himself up. But he felt a strong grip being applied to his right hind-leg. Looking down, he saw the large stallion pegasus holding tight onto his leg. His seal up wound started to open up as pain escaladed the stallion's body. He needed to be rid of this pony before his grip to the ledge faltered and that pony wouldn't be the only one to fall down to the dark depths below them.

"BLUE!" He yelled.

The pain was too much for him to take as he let go of the ledge by accident yelling. But his yell was dubbed out by the crackling sound of thunder that boomed through the dark raining clouds. Blue quickly slid off the building and grabbed the ledge. He quickly grabbed Castigate's right hoof. The pegasus fell into the darkness and his yell was soon silence by the sound of his body touching the ground hard. Blue smirked while pulling him up.

"You okay?" Blue asked taking a cigarette and lighting it.

"Y-yeah, but my wound opened up." Castigate groaned.

Blue went by his side and saw the wound open. He was no medic but he knew one thing how to seal up the wound. He glanced at Castigate and took out his cigarette.

"Keep your voice down." He said pressing the hot head of the cigarette against his wound causing Castigate to yelp quietly.

He muttered in audible curses through his silent pain.

"Sorry, but I am going to burn the wound up. Maybe this will get you around for awhile. Then we could find a medic to patch this wound up." He said. After twelve minutes of burning his wound, he went back to smoking his cigarette.

"Ouch." Castigate groaned quietly sobbing. Looking at Blue he tried to silence his groans. "Look, what happened when I was out?"

"We were ambushed by a pegasus that spotted us from a mile away. He took out the rest of your soldiers and kick your flank pretty bad. He was going to finish the job but I intervene and dang, that dude can kick flank. He was a quick and silent one." He said squishing his cig to the ground and helping Castigate to the window. "Going down...would be suicide with that painful wound on you."

"We can't take the doors, we need to break through the windows through here." Castigate said.

"But-

"But nothing, we have to do this. I am tired of wasting time because of this wound." He said interrupting Blue.

Blue looked at Castigate worryingly before setting him down.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Castigate asked looking at him confused.

"Listen to me, you can't do everything you know." He said. "There are always flaws within our paths. Flaws in which we must surrender to in order to proceed ahead. Sometimes we need to adjust, but we are not all capable of doing everything."

"Sheesh, you sound like-

"Shut up." Blue caused Castigate to look at him shock.

"Excuse me?" Castigate asked.

"You heard me, look at your reflection and tell me what you see." Blue said.

Castigate glared at him angrily before he looked at his own reflection from the mirror and gasped. He was in a total wreck. He knew this was all for the mission and the riches behind it, but the more he look at his reflection. He could see a pony that he very much hated. A pony he swore to destroy. That pony was undeniably a disease to him, as much as he was to him.

"Don't you see? You are a wreck. If you do this, you will most indefinitely die for being reckless. A pony who scams ponies of their profits usually are too smart during situations like this and seeing as you wanting to break through a window just so you could hurt yourself even more, you must be one of the only scam artists to not only be stubborn but also a fool walking up the steps where the dangling looped rope is ready for your neck to cover itself upon." Blue said grabbing Castigate's face and forcing him to look at his eyes. "You are going to die Castigate, if you continue trying to do everything perfectly. Who are you trying to impress with your reckless skills?"

"I..."

He couldn't say it to Blue. He couldn't at all for he knew the actual answer to it. Planning and scamming were two great skills he was known to be good at doing, but there was a flaw behind this. He knew that not all of his Planning and Scamming operations were successful. There were flaws left and right and a few he knew he was not capable of being careful on. But the sole purpose for who he was trying to impress was not the right word that followed its context. Instead, he was trying to show this pony that he hated in the mirror that he was better than him in every single way.

Blue let go of his face and backed away.

"You should think this out before everything goes down south for you." He said but after he spoke he looked at the exit and walked towards it leaving Castigate alone in the rain.

The unicorn got up from the ground and slowly limped towards the exit. He looked back at the window before opening the door and heading through it. As he proceeded down the stairs, he heard a loud siren ringing. He clutched his wound before continuing down the stairs that seemed to be endless. He started hearing a heartbeat echoing from the darkness below.

Sounds of hooves running on wood was heard. Soon they stopped when the sound of a door being heard opened. The sound of footsteps were then heard running on top of the wood. Eventually, they came to a stop when another door was heard being opened.

"What do you want, Castigate?" A rough tone male asked.

"I...I brought you back the quarter. I saved it when I was at the arcade?" A young Castigate was heard.

"You wasted two seconds of my time for that?" The male asked sounding annoyed.

"I'm...sorry." Castigate said saddened.

"Look, if you want to talk to me, you need to wait when I am done with this."

"But you are never done, you barely take a break here to spend time with me." Castigate whined.

"Well, that's life for you. It stalls your time from spending time with your own flesh and blood. You need to understand that it's how grownups are. Someday you will understand."

"But I don't want to understand. I want to stay a colt forever." He said.

"Castigate...come here." The male said.

The sound of footsteps was heard as he walked closer.

"I know that you want to play with me all of the time and I give you the same answer. But you must understand that if I don't do my job then we won't have any place to play in. We wouldn't have anything to play with. We will be on the streets like your mother and sister. Understand that business is the key to keeping you alive and healthy."

"But why can't you at least take ten minutes off of your job and play with me?"

"I wish I could, but even ten minutes is vital. How about this, I promise you that I will play with you and have Jasper take over for a while, just for us?" The male asked.

"R-really?" Castigate asked.

"Yes, I promise." The male said.

"Okay, thank you so much!" Castigate said happily.

"Now go and play, I still need to turn in these forms. The mayor in Baltimare is being a pain in the flank."

"Okay, bye, dad!" Castigate yelled being heard running out of the room, closing the door behind.

* * *

"What's going on?" Castigate asked himself as he rubbed his head. "Why is his voice in my head?" He could hear the heartbeat coming closer as he reached the last few steps.

Looking ahead he saw a long straight hallway with Blue waiting at the end.

"B-Blue?" He muttered looking at him confused.

Blue motioned him to continue to come to him. But as Castigate limp-run down the hallway, he could see Blue getting farther away from him.

"BLUE?!" He yelled starting to pick up his pace.

The pain from his wound ripple through his body causing him to fall flat on his face. He groaned in pain holding tight onto it.

"Get up, you are almost there." Blue's voice whispered through his ears.

Castigate got up painfully before he ran towards Blue. But the hall continued prevent him from getting closer to him. It scared him. His mind was shifted into a panic state where pain from his wound was numbed out and paranoia took drugged effect, lacing his mind with claustrophobia. The walls shifted and the ceilings leaked water. The ground beneath him turned into water that was three feet deep causing him to fall into the water. He emerged out of the water yelling for Blue to come and save him, but his voice was unheard. He started paddling to Blue, but the water was rising all the way up to the ceiling. His hooves touched steel as he founded himself in front of a gate. Blue was on the other side looking at him calmly before turning around and walking into a dark room.

"BLUE! BLUE! BLUE, SAVE ME!" He yelled trying to keep himself from submerging into the water.

"When you are always in a tight situation. The best way to avoid choking up is to close your eyes. Take a deep breath and say to yourself in your head. Everything is going to be alright when I open my eyes. When you open your eyes, the trouble you had shadowing you will be forgotten. Because all you have to do is just continue on with your life."

"But...how am I supposed to do that?"

"Planning it...that's the easy part. But the hardest part...is doing it."

"But how am I supposed to do that? I...I am too afraid to continue on."

"Just do as I say. No pony is creating a puzzle for you. They are showing you how they are handling their problems."

"And how are they doing that?"

"They're moving on."

"Moving on?"

"They're moving on, to the place where they belong."

"A place where they belong?"

"Home."

Castigate opened his eyes finding himself in front of the door Blue went through. Getting up quickly, he turned around and saw that the hallway was short and back to normal. He was confused but calm none of the least. As he opened the door, he saw the two mayors with a few guards glaring angrily at him. Castigate closed the door behind him after he entered into the office. He looked left and right searching for Blue.

"Where is Blue?" He muttered.

"So, you finally made it." The mayor of Baltimare said causing Castigate to advert his attention to him.

The mayor of Baltimare was a mare with that had a blue coat and peach mane tied into a pony-tail. Her eyes were blue. Her cutie mark was a document being signed by an ink pen. Next to her was another mare. She was the mayor of Fillydelphia. Her coat was yellow and her mane was blonde matching the color of her eyes. Her cutie mark was a star with small stars hanging at the ends.

"Where is Blue?!" He shouted holding onto his wound.

"Blue?" The mare of Fillydelphia muttered looking at the other mare.

"I know who he is talking about, don't worry. So, the son of Affluent is finally in our presence, injure and still...unstable. Tell me, how was your pleasant time at your father's hospital?" She asked.

"Tell me...where..." He fell to the ground coughing out blood. "Is Blue?"

"He's gone, Castigate. You won't be seeing him for a very long time. Perhaps forever." She said.

"I...I don't know what you are talking about. What do you mean he is gone?" He asked confused.

"Yes, you are the reason why he is gone. You choose not to move on. So he lost his sole purpose in this world. The world you made for him to live in." She said.

"W-what? What do you mean it's my fault?" Castigate asked looking at them shocked.

"Do you want to know who Blue Aspyxia is?"

"I would like to know how you two even know his name and me, but fine...tell me." He said sitting down.

"Blue Aspyxia is the pony that you created from your own head. He is the pony that you held onto as you slowly slipped away from the good and into the bad. He held you tight, but you couldn't hold him tighter. You continue to let your anger and sin cloud your mind as he did his job, but failed in completing it. Castigate. Blue Aspyxia was you. Your mind and virtue who seek a different way of ruling that was the opposite what you seen in Darkfire's intentions. You...you failed him and so he failed you. He is gone...maybe forever just as I said before. But you might be able to get him back. If you complete your main objective. The right way, the way he would want you to do." She said.

"B-but how?" He asked. "I am in this dang corner where I have no pony else to guide me to." He said slowly sobbing.

The mayor of Fillydelphia softly chuckled and said. "When you are always in a tight situation. The best way to avoid choking up is to close your eyes. Take a deep breath and say to yourself in your head. Everything is going to be alright when I open my eyes. When you open your eyes, the trouble you had shadowing you will be forgotten. Because all you have to do is just continue on with your life."

"But...how am I supposed to do that?"

"Planning it...that's the easy part. But the hardest part...is doing it."

"But how am I supposed to do that? I...I am too afraid to continue on."

"Just do as I say. No pony is creating a puzzle for you. They are showing you how they are handling their problems."

"And how are they doing that?"

"They're moving on."

"Moving on?"

"They're moving on, to the place where they belong."

"A place where they belong?"

"Home."

Castigate looked at her shocked. "Home?" He muttered.

"Home is where you will need to go. Now...to save you the trouble, we surrender our cities to Darkfire."

"But, why so fast. Aren't you going to fight back?" He asked looking at them shocked.

"We would...be we were not only paid to surrender, we were also convinced by the very pony you know a lot about." The mayor of Baltimare said.

Castigate looked to the ground and saw a small puddle of water. His reflection was clear and even though his image was stain of wretched appearance to look at, he slowly recognized the pony. The pony he knew clearly.

"I have to go home." He muttered limping towards the exit. "I have to see my dad."

Castigate's eyes slowly opened when he heard the train making a stop. He looked out of the window and spotted a large mansion up a hill just behind the train station. He looked at the suitcase in front of him and went over to it. When he opened the case he looked calmly inside. A black pen was next to a steel small blade. He picked up the blade and smiled at his own reflection before tossing it to the ground. He grabbed the dark layer of the case and pulled it out and looked inside of it again. What he saw underneath the layer of black cotton...was a quarter.

** Explanation: Ok so the chapter is a dream about the battle that happened. However, Castigate has multiple flashbacks of his childhood as he goes on through out the chapter. The chapter ends with him waking up from his dream.  
**


	19. Chapter 13 B

**Chapter 13 B: **Father and Son

The sky was black as usual with a few clouds slowly and calmly floated across the dark aerospace as the moon began to descend in the sky. An old pony in his fifties sat in front of lake. He watched as the blue water flowed passively across the rock shores with only a few white flowers that gave off a sweet scent of honey and tea to any living source next to it. This pony had a white coat, a faded blonde mane, blue eyes, and his cutie mark was three steel bars. A gloom mood was upon this old stallion as he stared at the water. Wind brushed through his mane gently as the sound of footsteps stepping on dirt and pebbles was heard next to him. He glanced to his right and saw Castigate. He was a colt frowning at him.

"Affluent." The colt spoke.

Affluent frowned looking back at the lake. Castigate sat next to him looking at the water with him. His father slowly glanced at him and saw his son in his older form.

"You're all grown up." He said calmly in an un-amused tone.

"I know...so have you, old man." Castigate said calmly.

Affluent looked back at the lake and sighed.

"Can't you see that I want to be alone?"

"I know, but I really don't care. Aren't you going to ask me why I am here?" Castigate asked glancing at Affluent.

"Why should I, if I already know why you are here?" He asked looking back at his son. "You came back here to settle some old scores. Scores in which you attempt to find so many ways in winning on it that you fail continuously trying to win against it." He said.

Castigate gritted his teeth before looking back at the lake.

"But you are wrong...I have the tools to win, old man. I have you in a tight grip where-

"I could care less what tools you have, who you're hiring or even who you are working for." His father interrupted him. "You are the same like always...a coward hiding behind others to clean up his own mess."

"I am no coward." Castigate said glaring at him.

"You can say that all you want, Castigate, but face it...you work for a mad pony who believes he is a god. Sometimes, I ask myself every time I look at the newspaper finding you in the main cover...why are you even my son? What kind of father am I to say that about his own son following a leader who will lead this country into crisis?" Affluent asked looking at the lake.

Castigate toss down a contract and a pen on top of it in front of Affluent.

"Sign your name." He demanded in an angry tone.

Affluent looked at the contract slowly before looking at his son.

"What is that?" He asked.

"That's a contract to ensure me owning your entire company and taking all of your money. If you choose not to sign it, I will ensure Lord Dark Fire to bankrupt you for good. You'll be sleeping with the rats." Castigate said smirking.

Affluent scoffed before looking back at the lake. Castigate became confused all of sudden.

"Sign the contract!" He yelled stomping his hooves.

"And what will you be doing with all of that money? Gambling?" He asked causing Castigate to frown.

He rubbed his forelegs against each other nervously.

"Figures."

"Gambling isn't much of a big deal, plus I never lose!" Castigate yelled.

"Yes...you do, everypony losses in gambling. You can win four-hundred bits or even more, but behind those cards, slots, or whatever insensitive or sensitive object you use to gamble. You are still losing your mind, your friends, your life, and your happiness. Give it up, Castigate...there's no reason for me to sign this and you know it. You might as well burn it." Affluent said as his horn glowed lifting up the contract and pressed it against his son's chest releasing his hold over it.

Castigate starts looking back at the lake frowning.

"Why can't you just sign it and be off with yourself?" He asked.

"Because my role here in this world is not done yet." He said.

"That's a load of horse..." He paused glaring at him before he looked back at the lake. "I hate you." He muttered.

"I know you do, I've always known." Affluent said closing his eyes. "I've always known this ever since your mother left."

"Heh, speaking of mom, I bet you still avoid talking to her and Trixie. They still mean nothing to you." He said looking back at the lake.

"Blue, oh Blue, oh Blue, where do you end? Do you freeze up in the winter, or do you let life play with you with their friends? Blue, you may be only a color. You may be just water. But you are our friend." Affluent said calmly opening his eyes and glancing at Castigate. "Do you know what those lines mean?"

"No, what do they have to do with mom?" Castigate asked confused.

"Your mother sung it...when you and Trixie were born. The song was the only song your mother knew to put you to sleep. What it means is that no matter how different you are from the rest of this world. I will still protect you from the dangers around you no matter where they come from. It worked pretty well when you two were still foals." He said looking at the white flowers.

Castigate sighed, looking back at the lake.

"Why did you leave her?" He asked.

"I had no choice...I...was a coward." He said causing his son to look at him shocked.

"A coward?"

Affluent looks up at the sky with signs of regret.

"She...I...was stubborn. I always believed that I could absolutely anything in this world. My ambition was my sin's fuel. She wanted me to stop my job, help others than myself. I snapped and almost hurt her. I couldn't bear to live in this world if I were lay hoof on her. So, for her own protection and for my own cowardly ways...I left her along with Trixie so I wouldn't have to go through that event again." He said frowning. "I never told her that I was sorry. I bet she is still out there alone, that her own daughter and son are both criminals in the skin of false royalty."

"Mom...she's not alone anymore." Castigate muttered.

"Speak up, I couldn't hear you." His father said looking at him confused.

"She's gone...because of you." He said glaring at Affluent. Affluent looked at him shocked before looking back at the flowers.

"W-when did this happen?" He asked.

"Not too long ago. I didn't need to ask Trixie how mom was when I read her diary. The only diary she had since she was a filly. I didn't want to bring up the subject with her, just for her sake." Castigate said pushing the contract to Affluent. "Look at the back of the contract; I copied her words down onto the back of the contract."

Affluent picked it up and started reading the written words in black ink. After twelve minutes, he set the paper back down on the ground and looked back at the flowers. "She still hates me too. I wouldn't blame her either. Cowards only deserve hate, why do you think I hated you too, son." He asked looking at him.

"I..." He stopped and looked at the flowers frowning. "I am...a coward of doubt. Weak...pathetic...a degenerate if you look at it." He started shaking his head sitting down. "I am..." He started sobbing. "I am lost and afraid." He said looking at Affluent.

"How can you be lost?" Affluent asked.

"I am searching for a purpose in life. A role that I can stick by forever until fate decides to change it, end it, or end me." He answered.

"You are depending on fate to guide you in life. Fate is no guide, it is a non-negotiable creature unseen by the very eyes were possess that controls the obstacles around us and allows us to take our own roles into play, using those obstacles that it so well possess. I don't believe in fate that much, but I do know the pretentious assists it has and the continuous tricks up its sleeves that could relinquish or destroy one or more living being's life. Maybe fate was what took her away and maybe it was fate that made me become the father you never wanted." He said.

"I have...a question?" Castigate asked.

"What is it?" Affluent responded.

"Do you..."

"No...I don't, like I said, but right now I will put in a more simple way to tell you. My role in this world is not done yet, close, but not yet. My role as a father is to raise you, just so you can survive in this world without me. Just for you to make the right choices and avoid the bad. You know...the way I look at it...fate may be responsible for you to be here talking to me. Look at me now, trying to get through my own wife's death by talking about something I don't even believe in. You are right...I am a fool." He said rubbing a small tear sliding out of his eye.

Castigate became shocked, for this was the second time he seen his own father shed a single tear.

"Thank you for telling me. Now...again...my role is not done. You are not ready yet to live in this world."

"What will it take to be ready?" Castigate asked.

"Moving on." He said.

"M-moving on?" Castigate asked looking at him confused.

"Through the blue, you need to move on. Something out there is calling for you; it wants you to find it." Affluent said before levitating the pen. He started signing his signature on the contract.

"W-what are you doing?" Castigate asked startled.

"My role is not done. Until you find that something, then, you may come back to me and tell me that you are ready to move on." He said levitating the contract to Castigate. "Now go."

"B-but...where should I go?" He asked looking at him shocked.

Affluent looked at him calmly. "Home."

With that said, Castigate saw memories flash before his eyes. Memories of the time he was a colt. The time when he was with his mother and sister. All these memories were fast, sad, happy, painful, and painless to see. The last flashback he saw was his father in his office stressed out. He was holding a quarter in his hoof looking at it saddened before placing it down on his desk.

"Dad...are you okay?"

"I'm okay...son." He spoke looking away.

"Here, take this quarter and add it along with the others in your piggy-bank." His father said tossing him a bronze coin.

As Castigate caught, he looked at it and gasped.

"This is worth six-hundred bits. Plus, this is what grandpa gave you who his father gave him." Castigate said shocked.

"I know...and so it's yours, keep it, cherish it, and remember it."

"I...I want you to have this." Castigate said running up to him before stopping and handing him a black feather. "Sorry if it isn't worth much...uh." He stopped when his father hugged him.

Castigate looked around his father's office before opening his drawlers. He founded the black feather that he gave his father. Touching it made him froze in place. When he backed his hoof away, he slowly sat down. Tears started to swell up around the sides of his eyes before sliding down his muzzle.

"You...still had it?" He asked, but he was the only one in the room. He looked to his right seeing Blue in the mirror. "Blue?"

"What are still doing here, don't you have to be looking for something?" He asked smiling softly.

Castigate looked down.

"I...I can't...I am going to fail. I am not going to win."

"Win what? This pathetic act of acceptance?" He asked annoyed. "I am shock that Dark Fire even took you into his kingdom. Or even consider you as one of his own elements."

"I am surprise too. I don't deserve this money, to be an element, or even consider being a son of a dead mother and a father who is wasting his life out there for me. I now know why he didn't had time to play with me when I was a colt, why his job was first before me, why he suffered the most before me, and...why he was regretting his decisions every time somepony came barging into his office, yelling at him for screwing up, sometimes even knocking over his stuff and destroying it. I could tell why, because he didn't want me or...Trixie and my mother to suffer like him. He can't go back, Blue. He is forever bound to that role in suffering. But again...he is suffering before me so I wouldn't suffer the most. He is taking the hits before me because I am still not ready to take them for myself. He is my father, and I was too blinded by hatred to see it." Castigate said wiping his tears away.

"So, you're blaming yourself?" Blue asked.

"I...I am, because of me. He knew I'll hate him, so he treated me bad so I wouldn't care about him when the time comes for him just as it came for my mother. You know, Blue? I could see why Trixie cared about our mother more than she did for him. Because she did the exact same thing he did to me. She suffered. Sacrifices were made in the parent's role. They were to sacrifice anything in order to see their own foal survive in this world. Even if it means having them hate them for making choices that would keep them alive. It's sad...to find out that the father or mother that you hate the most only did those terrible things just so you can survive." He said starting to tremble as tears continued to pour down his eyes.

"Do you think he still deserves to be hated now?" He asked calmly.

"...No...he doesn't." He said looking at Blue. "I...don't know how to do this dang it. Help me, Blue? I don't know how to talk anymore. I feel like my entire world shifted and toss me into space, letting me choke. Preventing any source of oxygen to enter into my body. It's killing me, and I-I'm… TOO WEAK TO DO ANYTHING!" He yelled slamming his head against the ground holding it in place crying. "I'm...SO SORRY, DAD! I DID NOT KNOW! I AM SO SORRY!"

Blue smiled before walking out of the mirror. He offered a hoof to Castigate.

"I want to move on, please, Blue...help me?" He asked looking up at him.

"Take me my hoof...and I will help you move on." He said smiling.

Castigate grabbed his hoof softly before a bright light engulfed his vision.

"I love you, Castigate. I am so proud to be your father." His father was heard crying.

"I...I am so proud to be your son, dad."

Castigate founded himself soaked by his tears looking at his father still looking at the lake calmly. He wiped away the last specs of his tears away before walking next to him and sitting down viewing the lake before him.

"I...I now understand." He said.

"You do?" His father looked at him.

"I do...and...I am sorry for hating you because of it. I was selfish. Which made me become doubtful, hating you, it was the only thing that kept me alive. It kept me doing crazy things, selling myself to games that only will make me or others suffer. Heck, I think I made innocent pony bankrupt and unable to raise his own family. I could have been a good role model for him and teach him never to gamble when you have a family and give him back his money. But that never happened. I felt like this world deserved to suffer because I did too. But now...everything's different...I feel like all that choking weight on me was lifted off my shoulders and the sad blue around me faded away into vivant colors. Dad...I am so sorry." He said looking at him saddened.

Affluent closed his eyes slowly before his horn glowed. A small jar came from the white flowers. In the jar, were two coins. The bronze and the silver.

"I kept this with me everyday hidden every time somepony came to our house just because I slipped up. This jar of yours is the reason why I stopped being a coward and learned to move on. It reminded me of you just as these flowers reminded me of your mother and just as the blue lake reminded me of Trixie. My role here...is done. You can finally now live your own life without me." He said before Castigate hugged him causing the jar to fall into the water sinking into the dark depths.

The two hugged each other tightly, happily smiling and sobbing as their most wanted moments in their life finally came. From the lake's reflection upon them, it showed Castigate as colt and his father in his twenties. Next to them was Blue smiling proudly before he slowly faded away. His job was done for Castigate and his father was finally able to spend their father and son moment...together.

***Begin Here's To You By Harry Gregson Williams Feat.a Ennio Morricone and Lisbeth Scott And Joan Baez***

**-To Be Continue-**


	20. Chapter 14 A

Chapter 14 A: Evil with moral

"Has he come out of his quarters?"

"Negative."  
"Nope."

"He's been in that room for over ten hours; have you've heard anything from him?"

"Nothing."  
"Nada."

"Great, he must be asleep or something…anyways, tell him the train will be arriving shortly and his men need orders."

"Affirmative."  
"Ok."

The officer left them, shutting the cabin door before the train whistle blew, leaving the two mares alone in the dim candle light.

"Why can't you be more serious with this assignment?" The dim colored mare whispered

"Lighten up Clove, all that stress will turn your mane white." The other mare responded.

"Oh ha…ha, very funny." She said, fondling with her hair.

"Besides, we're sort of on break, what kind of opposition could be out here in the warm, southern countryside?"

"It's not warm here anymore, this desert is now covered in snow and ice."

"That's technically still as a desert."

"Don't get smart with me you-

"Guards…come in here." A grim voice said behind them.

After being spooked for a moment, they obeyed, almost out of fear. The cabin was far from luxury, small in fact but manageable. The decorations were like something you would see in an old western film. In the middle of the room was a large brown stallion with his back turned to them, putting on his black waist cape and leather jacket. The fact that a single candle was illuminating him and the room didn't help either.

"I thought I told Dark Fire that I didn't need protection…and under the impression that you two were stallions." The brown pony remarked, attaching his hoof cannon to his left fore-leg.

"Lord Fire ordered us; he said you needed the company and defense." Clover said, almost like a recorded message.

"Very well then, I just wish he wasn't so motherly towards us sometimes. What are your names anyways?"

"Clove."

"Your full name and physical features."

"Ok then." Clover said, nervously. "My name is Shallow Clove. My physical features include: shaded gray coat, pearl white mane and tail, and a four leaf clover as cutie mark…oh and I'm a pegasus."

Without turning around, the Stallion nodded, fastening his hoof blade to his right fore-leg.

"And the other?"

"Well, my name is Sensile, and my physical features are-

"Your true form."

"W-what…I am in my-

"You have many forms shape shifter, just be yourself, you have nothing to hide."

The mare groaned before she flashed in a bright green light, revealing herself as a changeling.

"There…you satisfied? Now you know everything about us."

"So what's your name then?" Clove asked, unfazed by the fact that her friend was a changeling.

Turning around to face the guards for the first time, he put on his black, cowboy hat and smirked.

"Eccentric…element of cruelty."

At those words, his hoof blade sprung out from its sheath, revealing its full length of three and a half feet.

"The most infamous bounty hunter in Equestria."

Clover was almost tempted to roll her eyes, but chose not to.

"So why here, why this frozen wasteland?"

"Because of this."

Reaching into his bag, he pulled out a poster and tossed it onto the floor. As it unraveled, it showed a picture of an orange pony with a cowboy hat.

"Applejack, wanted for 8.5 million bits." The changeling read aloud

"My spies have tracked her here, why she is here I don't know, but there will be justice all the same." Eccentric added.

"What are we to do then." The mares said in unison.

"We find her…and end this war, ONCE AND FOR ALL!" He shouted, stabbing the picture of his target.

* * *

"Applejack, our food supply is running thin, and the fillies and colts might not have enough to eat today."

"Then give them mine, I don't need to eat."

"Applejack." Bluster Cloud interjected. "You haven't eaten anything for five days, please eat something."

"I can't do that…not until everypony has enough." She struggled to say.

"You're going to starve yourself, and then what will we do, surrender? You've the element of honesty, if you kick the bucket now…they will win the war."

Applejack sighed deeply as she turned to look out the window, watching the entire town falling apart before her eyes.

"Darn this element, how can I help y'all if everypony is catering to my needs?"

"Because the elements of harmony is our last hope for Equestria, don't let that hope parish over silly things…and as for you solider. Take a portion of every stallion's rations and give them to the children. It should be enough to cover for today at the least."

"Commander, I have some terrible news." A guard said, running through the door.

"Can it get any worse?" Bluster Cloud said, aggravated.

"We ran out of food."

"It got worse."

"We are only left with one option…we must leave to-

"No we can't leave, we have to push on through!" Applejack yelled, weakly.

"Maybe I can change her mind." A stallion said, walking through the door.

"Cousin Braeburn! Applejack almost shouted. "Where in tarnation have you been?"

"Been trying to find at least one apple tree that hasn't withered up."

"Sadly enough, the entire apple orchard is barren, nothing is left." The major added, walking through the door.

"How can it be all gone…" Applejack said, losing faith in herself.

"There is a passage way to safer land, but it's outside of Equestria's boarder."

"And Dark Fire's forces are closing in on us; the time to leave is now." Braeburn finished.

"There has to be another way, there just has to be..." Applejask said, going into sadness.

"I know your pain cousin, but it's for the good of everypony here."

Braeburn walked over to comfort his cousin with a hug, knowing they were about to lose everything they had worked for.

"Come on, let's get your things."

"Commander Cloud!" A guard panicked, rushing through the backdoor.

"What is it solider?"

"They're coming."

Everypony froze in shock and fear

"EVERYPONY, TAKE POTITIONS!"

* * *

The train approached from the north-east of the town, blowing it's dark whistle as it rolled across the land. Applejack and the rest took cover in every possible location within the town, hoping that it would passover them. They're fears were realized though when the train started to screech to a stop before their eyes. As the train stopped, it gave one last blow from its whistle before the metal car doors on the train slowly opened. Within the cars were fifty dark guards in full armor, all lead by a pegasus officer.

With only a motion of his hoove, they lined up in a parallel line before the last train car. As the last door opened, steam bursted out form it's sides, almost as if it was compressed with dry ice. When the steam dissipated, Shallow Clove and Sensile stepped out and joined the line of guards. It was them that Eccentric made his entrance by walking out slowly to make it that much more dramatic. He continued to walk before the broken sign at the entrance of the town caught his attention.

"Welcome to Apple Loosa…" He read aloud. "They've must have abandoned the town because of the weather."

"What do we do now?" Sensile asked, in her newly created disguise.

"Search the town, hunt for survivors, scavenge for food; but if anyone or anything tries to attack you, take it down." Eccentric ordered, walking ahead of everypony else.

The guards split up into two groups to search the left and right of the town. Meanwhile, Applejack and Bluster Cloud watched as Eccentric and his two guards walked down the snow covered road. The sky started to lose brightness, going from clear to cloudy, causing the area to seem almost gray. Not to mention the snow calmly falling before the town, making the situation almost peaceful.

"What are we to do Applejack; they outnumber us ten to one." Bluster Cloud whispered.

"I say we get out of here while we still can." Breaburn suggested.

"No wait." Applejack interjected silently. "Ya see that brown stallion over there…he's an element of disharmony. If ya'll can capture him, we could stop this whole conflict."

"Not likely to stop the war, but we could cripple their efforts entirely." Bluster said, smirking. "We shall send our soldiers to capture, let me handle the others."

Eccentric walked though the swinging doors of the salt bar, only to find it virtually devoid of life. The only exception was the one pony behind the bar, cleaning out a glass with a cloth. As he sat down on the stool, the two mares entered and took their seats beside him.

"Bartender, what do you have here?" Eccentric asked, lighting a cigarette.

"Nothing…nothing at all." The bartender said, weakly.

"No cider, beer, whiskey, or even mead?"

"All gone."

"What about salt."

The pony shook his head.

"Do you have anything?" Eccentric said, still talking calmly.

Reaching under the bar, the bartender grabbed a glass and set it down abruptly upon the bar.

"Ice…topped with snow." He said, applying snow to the top.

"This is what your town has been living on? Surly you're hiding something."

"This is all we have…for your kind." He whispered, saying the last part to himself.

"Look, I know the war has torn apart all of Equestria, but there is no point in hostility." Eccentric said, holding up a bag of bits. "And we're not here to start anything." He said, putting the bits on the table. "But if we're forced to…"

Eccentric then held up his right fore-hoof, showing the bartender his hoof blade.

"We won't hesitate…so give us three something to drink." He demanded, raising his voice.

The bartender hesitated for a moment before leaving to the back room. As he shut the door, another opened behind the trio. Creating a lot of noise with their hoof-steps, they slowly approached behind them. Eccentric starred into the dim candle light before one of them spoke.

"By orders of the Equestrian resistance, you three are under arrest for war crimes and treason towards your fellow brethren! Come quietly or we shall take you by force!" One of the guards demanded.

As they approached them with hoof-cuffs, a gust of wind entered the bar, blowing out the candle.

* * *

"The light just went out…what ya'll think is happening." Applejack said, troubled.

Just then, one of the guards was sent crashing through the window and skid halfway across the town. Seconds later, Eccentric came running out and grabbed the guard by his neck, strangling him with one hoof.

"Tell me where she is, and perhaps you will be granted the gift of air once more!"

"Go…to…Tartarus." The guard declared, before spitting on Eccentrics face.

"And you'll guide me there."

Releasing the grip on the stallion, he quickly kicked him to the side, sending him crashing into a stoop. Without second thought, he flipped the safety off on his hoof blaster and pointed it at the guard.

"I really don't want to do this, but this is your last chance! Tell me where Applejack is!"

The guard looked up and smirked, giving a slight chuckle of amusment.

"FIVE!"

The two mares then ran out of the bar, almost shocked at the sight before them.

"FOUR!"

A breeze passed over the town, and then silence.

"THREE!"

The blaster then started to create a high pitch squeal.

"TWO!"

The blaster began to glow brightly, as it formed a blue light at the end of the barrel.

"One…"

"WAIT!"

Everypony turned to see Applejack standing proudly before them, making her presence known in the middle of the town.

"I'm the one you want; don't hurt anypony anymore."

Eccentric was in shock, amazed that she would just give her self up, just like that.

"I don't believe it…so you're Applejack, the element of honesty. It's a shame we had to meet in such a situation, but all in all it's just the same. You're a criminal among the state, a danger to everypony among the nation; this is why you must meet your judgment." He said, pointing the blaster towards her.

"Says the pony that hunts down others for a quick buck. The same pony that comes into my families town, demands food and water, ruthlessly attacks ten of my guards, and almost destroyed a home along with a pony who's standing up for what's right." Applejack pointed out.

Eccentric showed surprise in what she said before making his decision.

"You…have a point." He said, powering down the weapon.

"What are you doing?" Clove asked, shocked.

"Everypony deserves a fair trial." He replied.

"Before yah capture me and take me to Dark Fire can I please ask this? What do you plan on doing to Apple Loosa."

"Well, we plan on…leaving the town alone due to its condition." Sensile said to her.

"You're lying…you're going to destroy everything aren't yah." She said, drooping her head.

The trio looked at each other, searching for an answer.

"My family always told me to never tell a lie…sadly, the truth is not always what we want to hear. You're correct Applejack, when we leave Dark Fire's forces with move into this land and turn it into an industry. Everywhere you look will be factories of war and weapons, and not a single trace of life will be seen. This is the path that lies before you, and only you will decide what the fate of Apple Loosa." Eccentric informed.

"Why…why are yah working for him?! That monster has destroyed so much and is dragging-

"Dark Fire is a pony to! He's a pony just like all of us, and only he understands the pain and suffering we have been through! Don't you get it, we're the outcasts of society finally making a name for ourselves, finally finding a cure for all of our torment and affliction! You may still be loyal to Celestia, but Dark Fire is our leader, our hero, our light in the darkness! It is because of him that we thrive along with everypony else in Equestria!"

"APPLEJACK, HE'S TRYING TO DECIVE YOU!" Bluster Cloud shouted from a roof top.

"I used to work hours upon end, trying to make enough bits to feed myself! Risked my life every day just to get a loaf of bread, but now…NOW YOU'RE THE HUNTED ONE! THE OUTCAST, THE CRIMINAL, AND THE DETESTED! I WILL NOT GO BACK TO THAT LIFE!" Eccentric screamed, powering up his hoof cannon. "NOW FACE RETRIBUTION!"

"APPLEJACK, DUCK!"

Breaburn came galloping out of shelter and tackled his cousin to the ground just before Eccentric fired. The bright, blue burst of energy barely missed, but caused the house behind them to explode, Sending flaming projectiles into the sky. During the chaos, Breaburn lifted her back to her hooves and took off into an alley.

"Soldiers, arrest the traitors!" Shallow Clove commanded.

"What soldiers?!" Bluster Cloud mocked, throwing down the unconscious body of the pegasus officer.

"Sensile, catch the fugitives…I'll handle this bad flank." She said, flaring her wings.

Taking flight in a burst of air, the mare landed on the roof where the commander was. Turning around to see where Eccentric was, she saw that he had vanished.

"Well, I guess were all alone up here, and you have nopony to help you." Bluster commented with a smile.

"Who says I need help, especially with a small task such as this." Clove teased.

"Please…you're going to have a hard time taking me down." He said, taking a stance.

"Okay then, don't say I didn't warn you." She declared, mimicking the opponent.

The two stared at each other, almost as if admiring each others appurtenance and forms before darting straight towards the middle and locked their hooves collectively in a power struggle.

"Is this all the strength you have? I shouldn't be surprised from a loyalist." The mare scorned.

"Or perhaps my power doesn't come from strength alone."

Without wasting a second, Cloud quickly pulled back, forcing Clove above him, and bucked her into the sky. Being caught in the moment he jumped up to meet her, flipped over her while grabbing her wings and hurled her back onto the roof. Cloud then quickly flew down and pinned her before she had time to recover.

"It comes from common scenes." He announced with pride, grabbing both her fore-hooves and pinning them to her back.

"Perhaps…but you forgot one detail."

Before he could comment, Clove smashed his head with her wings, almost mimicking a tambourine. As he let go of his grip, Clove wiggled away and kicked him across the face, making a huge bashing noise.

"OWWW!" Why do you guard always have helmets!" Clove complained, hopping on one hind-leg while rubbing the other with her hooves.

"You think that hurts, TRY HAVING A LOUD RINGING NOICE IN YOUR EAR!"

While Cloud attempted to get up and recover from his dismay, Clover fell on her rump, trying to ease the pain by blowing air onto her hoof. This went on for minutes until Cloud removed his dented helmet and stood up, quickly followed by clove.

"Give up; I don't want to hurt you." Cloud said to her.

"Start thinking with your head instead of your-

Before she finished her comment, Cloud darted under the mare and tripped her onto her mussel. He then picked her up off her hooves and locked her in a full nelson.

"YOU PERVERT! PUT ME DOWN!" Clove screamed.

"Were fighting for our survival right now, don't complain to me."

"You're trying to rape me, what do you expect me to do?!"

"I expect you to shutup!"

She then took the opportunity to lean forward, planting her hooves on the ground, and slammed the back of her head into Clouds face. Clove then broke free and tripped him forward. As Cloud was trying to figure out what just happened, Clove uppercut his jaw, knocking him against the railing of the roof.

"Surprised? I would be to; I'm a mare of many actions." She bragged.

"And many words…" He whispered to himself.

"What was that!" She responded aggressively.

"I SAID…

Cloud dashed forward and jabbed his hoof right into the mare's stomach, causing her spit out saliva.

"And many words."

Being surprised and angered, Clove grabbed the stallion by his head, and kneed him dead on the mussel. The two fights were now back in the same dilemma as before.

"At this rate, nopony is going to win." Cloud said, wiping the blood off of his mussel.

"You sadly…have…a point." She said, holding her stomach in pain.

"Then we should shake on it." He said approaching with his hoof extended.

"Agreed." She said, doing the same.

Before the two shook hooves, they both reacted in the same way. Clove punched Cloud across the mussel while Cloud kicked Clove in the stomach, knocking each other out at the same time.

* * *

"We have to hide cousin, stick to the shadows." Breaburn said, slamming the door behind him.

"What about everypony else." Applejack said concerned.

"They're capable of taking care of themselves, right now there concerned about you Applejack. You have to escape here."

"I cant lea-

Breaburn quickly grabbed Applejack, putting his hoof over her mouth, and took cover next to the window. Seconds later, Eccentric passed the same window and looked inside for a few seconds before walking away. As Breaburn inched away from the window, he bumped into a shelf, making a vase lose balance on its foundation. The two watched in horror as the vase finally plummeted to the floor. Almost as if it was in slow motion, the vase crashed and broke into tinny shards that scattered across the floor. Beads of sweet descended down the brow of Breaburn's mussel before releasing Applejack.

"I think he's gon-

All of a sudden, a huge crash was heard behind them, frightening them on the spot. They quickly turned around to see a large, blue light illuminating the brown stallion holding the blaster. Breaburn was frozen in fear, but this time, it was Applejacks turn to return the favor. She quickly tackled her cousin, rolling into the next room before the blue energy wave shot into the wall they were just behind.

"RUN!" Applejack yelled, in the heat of the moment.

Galloping at full speed for a good moment, they heard the ceiling of the room slowly giving in from all the action. Breaburn quickly reacted by pushing Applejack to the left, just before the room collapsed. Realizing what had just happened, Applejack panicked, calling her cousins name and while scavenging through the rubble.

"BREABURN!" She called once again.

"I'm fine Applejack! Just get out of here!" He yelled, popping out from the rubble.

"I told ya I'm not-

"GOSH DARN IT, FOR THE GOOD OF EQUESTRIA, GET OUT OF HERE!"

Applejack hesitated, knowing that this could be the last time they would ever see each other again. Eventually, she gave in and ran out one of the big gaping holes in the house. Breaburn watched as his cousin disappeared around the corner before another explosion occurred behind him. As Eccentric slowly walked in, he showed an expression of sorrow before quickly correcting it with a sadistic look.

"So she left you…I cant say that I don't know your pain." He said with sadness. "But I cant say I don't blam her…for this is the price of war."

"Or the price of freedom." Breaburn said bravely.

Eccentric remained silent as he pointed the blaster towards him, causing a thin wave to scan Breaburn. The blaster beeped loudly before Eccentric retracted his fore-leg and looked towards the device.

"Breaburn, cousin of Applejack, manager of apple farm here in Apple Loosa, traitor to our democracy…quite the record you have here."

"You still believe that your little…empire is a democracy? You poor thing…if only you could see what we've had to go through."

"I…Don't…Your wrong! You're a traitor to everypony and I can't let you escape!"

"Look into your heart…are we really the bad guys to you."

Eccentric looked angrily at him before his expression turned into that of regret.

"No…your not."

He then pointed the blaster at Breaburn and fired several wires into him, sending volts of electricity spiraling into his body. Breaburn, after giving out one last moan of pain, collapsed onto the floor unconscious.

"I'm sorry, but I owe Dark Fire my allegiance, I hope that you can forgive me one day."

Placing a device on Breaburn, he impute several codes before it began to glow bright white along with the unconscious body. After five seconds, both the device and Breaburn vanished.

"Lord Fire, I've just sent you Breaburn, a cousin of Applejack. How much will I get from him?" Eccentric said into the built in intercom in his blaster.

"I've told you, you don't have to address me as Lord Fire. Breaburn however…well get you one million."

"Only…thank you Dark Fire."

"Is Applejack captured as well?"

"No…I'm working-"

"RETREAVE HER NOW, I WILL NOT ACCEPT ANOTHER FAILURE!"

"Dark Fire, you can't expect me to-

"YOU'RE THE GREATEST BOUNTY HUNTER IN THE WORLD! DO IT OR I WILL!"

"Just give me more time, I will capture h-

"You have exactly two minutes to report back…or I'm coming their myself!"

"It will be done…"

* * *

Applejack continued to run through the alleyways, trying to find some form or some way to get out. When she reached a clearing, she found that there was nothing, nothing but ice and snow that went on for miles…no way out.

"Applejack, over here!" A voice called behind here.

She turned her head to see the major waving to her.

"Oh good, at least your fine." Applejack said, approaching her.

"Quick, we need to get inside, you lead the way."

"APPLEJACK, THAT'S NOT THE MAJOR!"

Quickly looking up, she saw the major frantically waving his hooves in the air. Before she could process this, the major behind her grabbed her and prevented any movement.

"HA, that was way too easy!" He said as his eyes glowed bright green.

"You're one of them changelings aren't yah?" Applejack asked.

"What gave that away?" The changeling said sarcastically, transforming into her true self.

"Look here, your helping the wrong pony; he's going to betray you all eventually!" Applejack yelled with a point.

"Says the pony that served a tyrant that banished us out of Equestria, just because we we're starving!"

"You attacked our kingdom!"

"You gave us no choice!"

Eccentric came galloping around the corner swinging around a ball and chain, ready to capture the target.

"Good job Sensile, now hold her steady." Eccentric commanded, increasing the velocity on the swinging.

"So Sensile is your name huh." Applejack asked.

"Yeah, what about it?" She asked confused.

"Sorry about this…"

Just as Eccentric threw the ball and chain, Applejack flipped the changling over her back, causing her to get entangled instead. Applejack then darted out of sight.

"I thought you had her!" Eccentric yelled.

"Well I did…now can you let me out."

"Yeah, once the jobs done." He said, taking off after her.

"WAIT…I don't like being alone."

* * *

Applejack ran out into the center of the town, looking around frantically and slowly walking backwards. She stopped abruptly when she bumped into a solid object behind her.

"You're done Applejack! You have nowhere else to go, nowhere else to hide!" Eccentric declared, charging his blaster to full power. "This will only you hurt for a moment…"

As he lifted up his fore-hoof to end the chase, Applejack made a hard 180 degree turn and accidentally kicked snow into Eccentric's eyes. As a result, the cannon blast missed Applejack by a hair, but created a trail of melted snow and ice behind it. She watched in horror as the blast completely vaporized a house and kept on going until it curved into a nearby mountain, causing it to explode like a volcano.

"NO MORE GAMES, IT'S TIME TO FACE YOUR PUNISHMENT!" Eccentric screamed, wiping the snow from his eyes and charging the cannon once again.

To the corner of Applejack's eye, she noticed a fairly large, pointed rock. Without any thought, she ran towards it and bucked it towards her opponent. Even though she wasn't aiming for anything in particular, the rock somehow jammed itself in the barrel of the blaster. Eccentric yelled in terror as the blaster malfunctioned before his eyes and exploded, shooting out a huge wave of smoke. Applejack turned around to run, attempting to escape both the bounty hunter and the smoke, but then she saw something unbelievable.

"Night Shadow?!" She said in disbelief.

"Come with me Applejack, it's not safe here!"

"I-I thought we'd lost you forever…I thought we'd never see each other again." She said, approaching him.

"That's exactly what I thought…YOU GULLIBLE FOOL!" He said, as his eyes glowed bright red.

Not being able to react, Applejack was back-slapped into a nearby building, almost causing her to blackout instantly. Opening her eyes, she watched as "Night Shadow" became the all too familiar pony, Dark Fire. Being unable to move, she was forcibly taken out of the building by magic and held in front of him.

"You've caused quite a scene…but this little game is over. Eccentric, are you ok!"

Eccentric emerged from the smoke with his clothing shredded and right fore-leg blackened and cut up from the explosion.

"It's just a scratch…nothing too…severe." He said, limping towards them before collapsing.

"Eccentric!" Dark Fire shouted worried before turning his attention back to his target. "You hurt him…that's my job, BUT YOU'VE HURT HIM!"

"And what about all the ponies you've hurt, the ponies you've enslaved, what about them?"

"WHAT THEY'VE DONE CAN NEVER BE FORGIVEN…not even Twilight."

"She still loves you, even after everything you've done."

"She only loves me now because I've won; I've done what nopony could ever do. I've united everypony forsaken by her under one rule, and best of all they share my pain, like I share theirs. Could your beloved princess do that?"

"She would have…"

"Please, she's had an eternity to do so, and she didn't even try once. I have had six months, and look at what I've accomplished with that time…you have no excuse."

With that said Dark Fire bound her with magic and tossed her forward.

"Just like Celestia and Luna, with one capture or defeated, the others soon to follow."

Applejack looked away, expecting the worst, but noticed a small flash one of the building ceilings. All she could do was smirk.

"What are you smiling at?" Dark Fire said, slightly irritated.

"In just a few seconds, you're going to regret being distracted."

"Learn your-

In the blink of an eye, a huge white flash burst in Dark Fire's face, dazing him and causing him to shield his eyes. Looking up abruptly, he saw that Applejack had vanished without a trace.

"Fine then, run while you can…but soon there will be no place to hide…AND THEN YOU SHALL KNOW HOW WE HAD FEALT ALL THOSE YEARS AGO!"

**__Side note: Applejack vanishing was a result of Endershine. **

**Next Chapter: Chapter 14 B: Remorse within inequity**


	21. Chapter 14 B

Chapter 14 B: Remorse Within Inequity

One hour after the escape

_Dark Fire overviewed the guards' actions and movements, making sure everypony in the town was accounted for. Once all the ponies were brought forth to him, he signaled to Sensile._

"Is this really all of them?"

"It is Dark Fire. Many of them left when the cold front came in." She said, holding a scroll.

"Let me see the census." He said, snatching the paper.

"I have a name you know."

"Yeah, yeah…"

_Scrolling down the paper, he silently counted each pony on it while glancing up time by time.._

"This can't be right, there used to be more than one-hundred ponies living here. All I see here is twenty five, not counting the ten guards."

"Like I've said, they left during the cold front. All the hatred going around is causing the Windigo's to go rampant."

"Hmmm, Eccentric? What was the temperature here again?"

_Eccentric was off to the side on a medical bed, being treated by three medical ponies. Meanwhile, Clove was watching from a distance with a worried expression._

"About zero, sir." He said, attempting to sit up.

"Zero what? Celsius or Fahrenheit?"

"What if I said Kelvin?" He asked, smirking.

"Well, we wouldn't be talking right now if it was absolute zero now, would we?"

"It's Fahrenheit."

_Dark Fire pondered as he stared into the sky._

"I guess we're going to have to change that." He said as his horn erupted in a blaze of fire.

"WAIT!" Sensile screamed, getting Dark Fire's attention. "An abrupt change in the weather will cause a massive flood. Don't you remember what happened last time?"

"No…?"

* * *

"I can't change climate, uhh…sir." Ammisive said, nervously.

"What do you mean you can't?"

"Climate is different from weather; it's not in my jurisdiction."

"Ok then, I will do it." Dark Fire said, getting off the throne.

_He then opened a window and casted a magic beam that penetrated the night sky. The falling snow was then converted into rain as it got warmer._

"That should last another two weeks before the Windigo's freeze the atmosphere again."

_Meanwhile, outside of the castle._

"Man, I hate the cold." A guard said, standing outside the palace entrance.

"Oh no, the last time you started this conversation, we were back hoofed into a solid gold wall! Just be thankful for what you have." Another guard said next to him.

"All we do is stare out into space, guarding an impenetrable palace."

"Oh here we go again, are you even listening to me?! Last time, you were complaining about staring at a door!"

"I wish something exciting would happen."

_Just then, all the snow around them combusted into water. Before they realized what just happened, all the buildup snow on the ceilings crashed onto them and washed them away from their post._

"YOU…FREAKIN…IDIOT!" The guard yelled before being submerged in the water and carried off like a barrel on a river.

* * *

"Uhhhh…I didn't do it?"

"Sure you didn't." Sensile said sarcastically.

"Whatever, we shall use global warming to our advantage. I want to see factories scattered all over this land." He said, scoping the land with his eyes. "Eccentric, what shall we do to this town here. It can make great firewood for our weapons."

"You should, actually, you should let it stay." Eccentric said, lying back down on the mat.

"What? I thought you would have been the first to-"

"I have my reasons, plus when you bring this town back to health, it can be used as housing for the workers." He pointed out.

"You have a point I guess." He said with disappointment as he tossed away a chainsaw.

"What about the civilians?" Clove commented.

"Watch and learn."

_Dark Fire stepped forward towards the crowd of capture ponies._

"As you might have guessed, I am Dark Fire, but others call me Lord or even Prince. Yes, I have given myself these titles and even the title of Prince of darkness, but let's be honest. I am neither of those things…well the first two at least. I am just like all of you, I feel sadness, pain, suffering, happiness…love…" Dark Fire had a brief pause before resuming. "But most importantly, I am your leader. It is my job to make sure that all of you are safe from harm and tyranny. This is why we are taking you to a safer place, not because we can, but because there's nothing left here. I ensure you that no harm will come to your beloved town; we are simply taking the necessary precautions to ensure your safety. If you still don't believe me, at least here this.

Under Celestia's rule, you relied on here to bring out the sun every day for warmth and comfort. You depended on your form of government, which is exactly what they want you to do, this is called Absolute Monarchy. What that means is that the king or queen, or in this case princess, can rule with no one else restricting their power. They are also granted the ability to reign until there life is over, but because they're immortal, they would literally rule forever. Also, because of the fact that they wanted you to depend on them, your technology never advanced. Tell me, do any of you know what electricity is?"

_He paused to see if anyone would answer._

"This is because you live an agrarian/Industrial society, but under my rule, you will flourish like never before. What I offer is a new form of government and improved technology that will allow you to work less and accomplish more. The government I offer is a democracy, but with a slight twist. There are multiple ponies in charge instead of one, but my fellow ponies, it will be you who runs the government and not the other way around. You will be able to select your own leaders and propose your own laws. Now with the subject of technology. You will have things like light bulbs and televisions, and much more. Just think of the possibilities, but this can only happen if you give me your loyalty. In return, I will not submit to oppression, give in to threats or terrorism, and allow your voice to be heard. Together, there will be nopony that will ever make us submit to their wishes ever-

_Suddenly a bright blue flash appeared behind Dark Fire that caused every ponies attention to be directed towards it. _

"HOW DARE YOU NOT TELL YOUR PRINCESS YOU'VE WENT!"

"Ummmm, this meeting is over, BYE!"

_As he tried to teleport, a magical force grabbed his tail and yanked him back._

"Trixie asks you to do one thing, and that is to tell her we're your going!" She said, pinning Dark Fire to the ground. "But no, all you want to do is take off without even telling Trixie goodbye! This isn't all about you anymore, Dark Fire. Trixie has needs too, and you need to be aware of these needs like your carrier depends on it! Do you realize how embarrassing it is when, Trixie, has no idea where you are?! Trixie, needs to know exactly where you are and where you're going to be every second of the day, and Trixie can't do that when you're just vanishing all over the place like you own all of Equestria!"

"But I do-"

"No, you've done enough for today, and Trixie thinks you've hanged out with your "guy friends" for too long-"

"Trixie-"

"-You need to learn to organize-"

"Trixie!-"

"-Your time better and be a better-"

"TRIXIE!"

_She paused and looked around to see __**everypony **__staring at them, mouth a gap._

"Not in front of the civilians." He whispered to her. "Well that's all the time we have for today, we hope you have a pleasant stay in the new Equestria." Dark Fire announced before teleporting Trixie and himself back to Canterlot.

Canterlot Throne Room

"WHAT…THE…BUCK TRIXIE!" Dark Fire shouted as he and Trixie appeared from teleporting.

"What, what did Trixie do this time?" She said, aggravated.

"Don't act like you don't know, and what have I told you about third person?"

"Trixie's fond of it, the world is our stage and we are the actors."

"Yeah, that's shakespeare though, not my little pony."

"What?" She asked confused.

"Never mind Trixie, just don't do that again in front of everypony, especially during a speech."

"But you're **ALWAYS** in a speech!"

"Exactly, because I'm a busy pony and I rule Equestria now, don't you get that?"

"You need to relax for one day; it's not like it the end of the world."

"But we're in a wa-."

"Trixie does not care, you're going to have a day off weather you like it or not." She said, grabbing Dark Fire by the ear with magic and dragging him behind her.

"W-w-hat ar-errer- ***Gibberish*** GUARDS, HELP I'M BEING PONYNAPPED!"

_Multiple guards flooded the throne room to see the embarrassing seen before them._

"Remain at your posts, everything is fine." Trixie commanded.

"Don't listen to her and help me!" Dark Fire demanded.

_The guards we're now in stalemate, having no idea who to listen to._

"You'll be fine Dark Fire, just think of it as a date." Trixie teased.

"A DATE?! HELP ME PLEASEEEEEEE!"

_The door slammed in the guards faces before they burst out laughing at what they had just witnessed._

_Several hours later_

"So you're actually going on a date with Trixie?" Ammisive said, snickering.

"IT'S NOT A DATE!"

_All the elements of disharmony and other ponies of power suddenly combusted into laughter, well almost every element._

"This is so stupid, why would you let her do that, you know that all she wants is power?" Desolent asked coldly.

"And you would know all about dating wouldn't you." Stardancer joked.

"Yes I would, the fastest way to a mares heart is by impaling them with-"

"Ok ok, that's enough about…that subject." Stritin said abruptly.

"Why, are you afraid to get your hooves dirty?"

"No it's just…it's just…old memories." He said, with a hint of regret. "But this should be a happy time, we're winning the war, Dark Fire has a date-"

"IT'S NOT A DATE!" Dark Fire screamed again.

"Whatever Dark Fire, you silly love bird." Maneful commented.

"Just remember to bring lots of bits…you're going to need them." Castigate added with a laugh. "Oh, and remember to show her who's boss, mares like that stuff."

"Which is why they all left you." Eccentric said to him, causing everypony to laugh except Desolent.

"Well you all seem to be getting along quite well. I'll just leave you to it." Dark Fire said, slamming the door behind him.

_They all waited several moments before bursting into a fit of laughter again_…_except a certain dark green unicorn that sat in the corner of the room alone. _

Main hallway of Canterlot Castle

"This is not the time uhhh…whatever your name is."

"It's Ditzy Doo, you don't remember me?"

"Ditzy? Wait are you…yeah, it is you! You're that mare that Night, I mean I talked to before he…I did that…think with the colors…yeah…"

"So how have you been Nightie, It looks like you got a new dye for your coat."

"Uhhh, yeah let's go with that, hahaha…haha…ha." He said, giving an awkward smile.

"I came here to see if Celestia would let me see my husband again."

"Ummm, have you been out of the country recently?"

"No…why?"

_'She must not have been affected by the hatred wave. Strange…she doesn't appear to be intellectually gifted…unless…'_ He thought to himself "Derpy, do you wield an Element of Harmony?"

"An element of what now?"

"An Element of Harmony, you know, Kindness, honesty…magic?"

"Is muffins an element?"

"No Derpy…muffins is not an element."

"No…?"

"Ok, next question, have you had any contact with an Elements or even Dis-element."

"I don't think so, why are you asking so many questions."

"Do you classify as a special pony or "special pony"?

"I don't know, I just want to see Dust Breaker again."

"Dust Breaker?"

"Yes, that's his name, if you ever find him please send him back to me, I really miss him."

"Actually, we have some spare rooms here in the castle, you can stay here until we find him."

"That would be awesome, thank you." She said, walking off.

"Wait, she never told me his physical descriptions, HEY-

_The large jeweled doors behind him suddenly started to creak open, exposing multiple guards and three distinct mares: Chrysalis, Nightmare Moon, and Trixie. Even though the two prior looked the same, Trixie looked absolutely royal, even for princess status. She wore an olive reef and had her hair straightened and brightened, making it look like freshly poured milk. On her neck was a regal ruby amulet in the shape of a diamond that was surrounded by other multicolored gems. Her magician's cape was altered with gold trimmings, and the white stars were replaced with every colorful jewel ever seen by pony eyes. It was enough to make Dark Fire blush._

"Well, what do you think of Trixie now?" She asked, standing two feet away from him.

"I-I-don't k-k-know what to-

"You are impressed Trixie takes it, that's no surprise. Even Trixie, would be impressed with her looks. Well come along now, you have a day to enjoy for yourself." She said walking outside, completely oblivious to Dark Fire gawking at her.

_Picking up to what was happening; Chrysalis walked over and slapped him out of his trance._

"Owww, was that necessary?"

"No." She said smirking. "But she's right, you should enjoy yourself."

"We shall take over for today." Nightmare added.

"Thanks, but if you need help with any-"

"Don't worry about it, just go." Chrysalis said, pushing him out the door.

_The two golden doors closed shut as the two mares turned back and walked._

"Do you sense it too, Nightmare?"

"Yes, but the question remains…will he share her feelings?"

* * *

"Great, even the changelings are laughing at me." Dark Fire said, staring at three giggling changelings.

"Will you stop worrying about it and relax? You'll give yourself a heart attack and then where will we be."

"Well, the four co-leaders would fight over the throne, plunging Equestria into rebellion and making four fractions. The Elements of Disharmony would more than likely disband into these four fractions causing massive warfare, and you would more than likely be removed of power or held for ransom. In short, everything I worked for and done would go to waste and as a result, I would be looked at as a dictator who attempted to prove that Nightmare and the others were actually ponies with feelings and emotions."

_Trixie's face had turned completely white as she continued to stare._

"Do Trixie a favor and don't randomly kick the bucket." She said, continuing to walk.

"Oh don't worry, I won't." He said, approaching a bucket.

"With any luck that…shouldn't…"

_Trixie turned around to see Dark Fire smirking at her just before he slightly kicked the bucket over with his hoof._

"DARK FIRE YOU IDIOT!" Trixie screamed.

"You're too gullible Trixie, superstitions is just a bunch of baloney."

"BUT WE DON'T EAT BALONEY, AND IT'S NOT A SUPERSTITION, IT'S A METAPHOR!"

"...Augh!"

_Dark Fire suddenly started coughing and put his hooves over his heart before collapsing on the ground. Trixie let out a shriek of terror as she rushed over and held Dark Fire's head in her hooves._

"Why! Why must this always happen to me! WHY DO THE GODS CURSE ME LIKE THIS!?" Trixie shouted.

"T-trixie, c-come closer." Dark fire said weakly.

_Trixie leaned in closer to Dark Fire as her eyes watered. He then weakly extended his hoof, placing it on Trixie's head, and whispered into her ear._

"Gotcha."

_Trixie's eyes ceased to water as her facial expression changed from sadness to poker face._

"You son of a-"

Five minutes of profanity later.

"You finished yet?" Dark Fire asked with his hooves behind his head.

"Yeah…Trixie thinks so." She said panting.

"Good, because that was so worth it." He said, before backflipping off the ground.

"Show off…"

"I would normally agree, but you do it all the time." He said, patting her head. "So what are we going to do and how much money am I spending?"

"Well, Trixie took the liberty to plan out and reserve every place we're going to go."

"With my money?"

"Our money Dark Fire, this isn't about you anymore, remember?"

"Fine, so how many places do you have planned out?"

"Oh…just a few."

_After literally going to every shop, store, and mall, practically buying everything imaginable, things finally started to calm down. Mainly because Dark Fire couldn't carry any more bags._

"Come on Dark Fire, we're going to miss the show if you don't hurry up."

"Be *pant, right *pant, there…" Dark Fire said, taking a few more steps before his legs gave out.

_As he face planted into the floor, every bag and patchage collapsed onto him, almost like an avalanche of luggage. However this time, Trixie didn't turn around to help._

"Lord Fire, are you hurt?" One of the civilians asked, surrounded by many more ponies

"No…just my pride…and lungs." He said as his face turned blue.

_After getting pulled out of the mountain of gifts, Dark Fire used his magic to teleport all the items back to Trixie's room in Canterlot._

"Why didn't I do that earlier?" He asked himself before catching up to Trixie.

* * *

"What the heck am I watching?" Dark Fire asked himself, sitting in a movie chair.

"A theater screen." Trixie replied, smiling.

"Well no duh, I was talking about the movie."

"Oh, it's called Twilight."

"Why…of all the things you could have done…why?" Dark Fire asked.

"Oh come on, it's not that bad."

"NOT THAT BAD?!"

_Suddenly, ten mares turned around and gave him angry glares. Dark Fire in returned, growled at them, making them turn back around in fear._

"All I've seen is a confused mare who can't decide if she wants to be with a vampire pony. Who by the way, has a coat condition and magically sparkles in daylight. Or be with a werepony, who has to have most of his coat shaved off because he's too "sexy for his coat." And what these two stallions do is have a war over her, and she has to make a decision. Am I supposed to feel sorry for her, or find this comical? I mean, come on, Romeo and Juliet is a better love sorry than this."

"What's that about?" Trixie asked.

"You're kidding right, you're kidding…right?"

_Staring into her eyes, he saw confusion and couldn't help but sigh in disbelief. _

"You should read it; it has a real happy ending to it."

"Really, what happens?"

"The two lovers commit suicide."

"HOW IS THAT HAPPY ENDING?!"

"Shhh…you trying to wake up the other sleeping stallions?"

"How is that a love story?" Trixie whispered.

"It's not; it's a three day relationship between a thirteen year old mare and a seventeen year old stallion that causes six deaths. To me, that's romance because that's how all relationships end."

"You're being very stereotypical."

"Really Trixie, am I really? Ask any of the Elements of Disharmony how their relationships went. Ask Nightmare or the other's if they ever experienced love, or perhaps you want a first person perspective from me, because I can give you one that happened about six months ago. I'll give you a hint, her name is in the title of this movie."

_There was a pause in the conversation as the movie continued playing._

"Trixie…I'm sorry, I didn't know." She apologized.

"Don't be, rejection affects all of us, I'm simply here to hopefully fill that void of emptiness inside of all of us."

"D-do you think you could ever love again?" Trixie asked, putting her hoof around Dark Fire and leaning her head on his shoulder.

_Dark Fire was shocked at her sudden movements, but it was question that was always on his mind._

"I…wish I knew the answer to that." He whispered.

Two hours later

_The credits to the movie started to role as Trixie got up from her seat and started stretching._

"See, was it so bad?" She asked, turning to Dark Fire.

_It was then that Trixie realized that he was completely asleep on the chair. Looking closer, she noticed a saliva bubble had formed to the side of his mouth and was slightly snoring._

_'I should have guessed' _Trixie thought to herself.

_She then removed her satchel bag she was carrying and slapped Dark fire across the face, knocking him out of the chair and onto the floor._

"You awake yet?" Trixie asked, knowing the answer.

"No…" He whispered in pain.

_It finally came to the last event of the night, dinner...that happened to be at the most expensive restaurant in Canterlot. Even after Dark Fire's rage tantrum and the constant staring, giggling and autographs, the two were enjoying their time together. That is, until a particular question was brought up._

"Dark Fire, have you ever loved somepony so much, that is was the only thing you could think of?"

_Dark Fire gave Trixie a very confused look as he put down his glass of red wine._

"What's with all the personal questions lately, if I can so kindly ask?"

"Well, there's nothing else to talk about, and all you talk about are battle plans or how to make Equestria better."

"Fine then, you can ask you stupid questions, see if I care?" He asked, putting his head on his hooves."

"And be honest with them." Trixie reinsured.

"Yeah, yeah." He said before drinking from his glass again.

"Have you ever had a marefriend?"

_Dark Fire instantly spat out whatever wine was left in his mouth onto the ground. Looking up at Trixie with even more confusion, his expression changed to a smile as he started to laugh maniacally._

"ME, ever having a marefriend?! HAHAHAHA, do you realize how silly that sounds? I'm Dark Fire, I practically represent the element of hatred, I could never have a marefriend, it's impossible. I have a better chance of getting struck by lightning seven times, winning the lottery_, _and getting a royal flush against Castigate than ever getting somepony to love me." He said, continuing to laugh.

_Trixie had a look of sadness and nervousness as she silently sat there._

"Do you want one-"

_She quickly put her hooves over her mouth as the words slipped passed her lips. Dark Fire stopped his laughing, and gave her a shocked expression._

"I've…always wanted one." He said with a saddening tone. "But no matter what I do or what I try, no pony will ever give me a chance. I'm stuck with only myself, and that's all I ever need."

_There was a long pause before Trixie spoke up again._

"You're lying." She whispered.

"Ma'am your Eggplant pineapple express." The waiter said, putting the plate in front of her. "And for you, a hay sandwich."

"A hay sandwich…..I ASKED FOR A HAM SANDWICH!" Dark Fire screamed, standing up from the chair. "YOU HAD ONE JOB, AND THAT WAS-

"DARK FIRE!" Trixie shouted, using her magic to calm the angry prince.

_He took a deep breath before slowly sitting back down, but by then everypony was staring with fright._

"I'm sorry; my anger gets the best of me sometimes-

"Sometimes?" Trixie added.

"Most of the time…I hope this can cover this little incident." He said as his horn flashed red.

_Before the waiter could respond, a giant money bag landed onto his head, knocking him unconscious._

"What would a pony do with hm anyways?" Trixie asked.

"Eat it, duh."

"You…eat…meat?"

"Why not, it's magically delicious."

"Ponies don't eat meat, Dark Fire, and how can you even do it."

"Trixie…have you ever had bacon?"

"No! Trixie, isn't a cannibal!"

"What, hold up, I don't eat ponies. I wonder how they taste like."

_Trixie's face turned completely white._

"Well I guess this hay sandwich will have to do." He said, stuffing the entire sandwich into his mouth and swallowing.

"Didn't your parents ever tell you to chew your food?" She said with disgust

"Parents? What parents?"

"You're mom and dad?"

"Pfff…I never had those."

"That's horrible, and Trixie thought she had it bad, what was your childhood like?" She asked, feeling remorse.

"My…childhood?" Dark Fire whispered.

_He continued to stare as his gaze slowly went downwards to the table. Trixie only had seconds to notice that Dark Fire was actually shedding tears before he abruptly stood up._

"I-I'm sorry you had to see me like this." He said, running out the door.

"DARK FIRE!"

Several hours later, in the Royal Canterlot Garden.

"What's happening to me…why am I experiencing these feelings and emotions?" Dark Fire asked himself.

_He continued walking until he found a hill with a fairly large oak tree to sit under._

"I'm supposed to be a ruler, without restrain or remorse, without compassion or understanding. So why…why does this mare known as Trixie make me feel this way. Why am I always calm around her, buy her gifts, give her my knowledge, train her to be a leader…why?"

_The clouds cleared, revealing the beautiful sight of a full moon right before his eyes that illuminated the area around him._

"Isn't this something you're already familiar with?" A voice asked, as fog started to surround Dark Fire.

"Who's there?! Show yourself!"

"Have you already forgotten about me, Dark Fire?" The voice responded, as the fog grew thicker.

_It wasn't long before the fog started to swirl around the confused unicorn and formed an image of a pony next to him. Dark Fire blinked and the form took on the same colors as Night Shadow, only with bright blue eyes._

"You, why are you here?"

"Because I'm you, and nopony else will be able to explain what's going on with you."

"Where's, Night Shadow?"

"I thought you knew…you locked him up in the prison of your own mind, never to have his own opinion again."

"But that would create-"

"An unbalance in your heart and conscious. Forcing you to only have only good decisions…or evil ones." He said, pointing to Dark Fire with his hoof.

"That doesn't explain anything!"

"It does perfectly, but you're too stubborn to see it. When Night Shadow still had control over his body, you were his main influence as you plunged him down into the depths of darkness. Now look at you, you have everything you ever wanted, but you feel something missing."

"What are you trying to say?"

"Because you have control now, you put Night Shadow in your place, allowing him to have an influence in your life. However, because you imprisoned him in your own head, I now have the responsibility of influence in your life. The results are all around you."

"You don't control me."

"Believe what you want, but the mercy and grace you give to your own workers is not by your own doing, but by mine."

"Shut up, I have complete control!"

"Is that why Celestia still lives?"

_This made Dark Fire shut his own mouth._

"I had her spared…" Dark Fire whispered

"You had her condemned…I thought you, of all ponies, believed in second chances."

"I do, this is why I've united everypony banished by her, to prove that they can change."

"Then practice what you preach."

_Silence fell on the two of them._

"Why are you helping me?"

"I'm not helping you, I'm helping ourselves. These emotions are caused by regret, regret of what you have done. Heed my warning Dark Fire, for if you do not stop this war and give up your power, the guilt will consume you, and not even you will be able to stop it."

"What must I do then? TELL ME!" Dark Fire screamed

"You must forget the past and move towards the future. Forgive those that have done harm to you, and they shall forgive you."

_As the image started to fade, Dark Fire made an attempt to form words from his mouth but only gibberish came, until he finally spoke._

"What about Trixie?"

"Isn't she what you've always searched for, your key to happiness?"

"W-what…I still don't know? Please tell me!"

"She is…love." The figure said just before vanishing,

"DARK FIRE, WHERE ARE YOU?!" The all too familiar voice yelled.

"I'm over here, Trixie!"

"Oh thank goodness, Trixie searched everywhere to find you."

"I'm fine, but you look nervous."

"Trix…I mean I have a confession. You always treat me well…but you act like a heartless beast to others that don't accept you." She thought, reaching into a hidden bag. "I remember the day you told me why you did all of this. Yes it was because you hated Celestia and wanted to redeem those she banished, but even you saw that it wasn't the only reason or even a valid reason. No, what you told me made me think of myself, you told me all you wanted was a friend, a pony to love you for who you were." She said, removing a pink bottle.

"You may not think of me as somepony that could ever love you, but I do. You have a heart and you proved it when you cared for me when nopony else would. Gave me a home, made me a princess, and taught me everything you knew. Now it's time to return the favor Dark Fire." She said, examining the bottle in her hooves and looking back at Dark Fire. "Please drink this, it will make your heart whole again, fix the unfixable and repair the damage that has been done to you, because…I love you."

_Dark Fire grabbed the bottle, looked over it a few times before smashing in on the ground. Trixie's eyes started to water but Dark Fire lifted her face up and wiped away her tears._

"That's not necessary and it would be useless, because...I love you too."

_He quickly leaned in and kissed her on the lips before she could even respond. What was only minutes felt like hours before Dark Fire broke the kiss._

"Trixie…I think it's time for us to go home."


	22. Chapter 15 A

**Chapter 15 A**: Venom within Her Smile.

"I had my doubts about you, but I see that you're the only candidate for the job. That and your father including Dark Fire speak highly about you. I am giving you the position to be in command over my changeling army; they are masters of disguise and stealth. They will get the job done as long as you do your part and that is being a fearless leader and putting the safety of the swarm before yourself. Do this and you shall succeed where I have failed before. Your father said you're a princess; I want you to be a queen. Do you accept these responsibilities?"

"By all means, Chrysalis, I shall return back here with not one scratch on your changelings."

"Then be off, Maneful, you have a job to do."

Turning around, she overlooked the view of the army of Changelings in perfect formation lined up. As her wings flared out, all the changelings followed in mimicry and begin to buzz their own wings.

"Maneful, I've been sent to give you this message from your father, King Sombra!" A messenger called running towards her.

"What does my father want now?!" She asked becoming frustrated.

"He says that you're not ready for something like this and commanded that you let somepony else lead the attack." The messenger said.

Maneful's eyes started to twitch before turning into an angry expression. It was soon diminished and replaced with a fake smile.

"Chrysalis, tell my father that daddy's little girl isn't so little anymore, AND THAT HE SHOULD MIND HIS OWN BUCKEN BUSINESS," she shouts before she abruptly launched herself into the air. "LET'S MAKE THESE PONIES PAY FOR EVERYTHING THAT THEY EVER DONE TO US!"

As she flew off, the Changeling army took flight and followed her, completely blocking out the full moon and sky causing a dark shadow to hover above the kingdom. Chrysalis stayed in her place until the last changeling left her sight.

"Don't let me down," she mutters before disappearing in the darkness of the night.

* * *

"LAND HERE, BEFORE WE'RE SPOTTED!" Maneful commanded, diving into the trees below.

As the Changelings obeyed, Maneful found a clear spot that allowed her an overlooking view of the targeted city.

"There it is fellow changelings, Manehatten; one of the biggest and most developed city of Equestria. It's practically named after me." She said rubbing her hooves together excitingly.

"Maneful, there appears to be a magical barrier around the city." One of her soldiers said.

Maneful took a closer look at the city and just as the changeling said; there was a huge pink colored dome around the city.

"Everypony or changeling, stay put, I'll investigate this. You there, what's your name?" She asked, pointing her right hoof to the changeling to her left.

"Imago, ma'am." He responded, standing at attention.

"You have some manners, alright, you'll do. Follow me." She ordered.

Maneful took flight and flew low to the ground. Looking back, the changeling, Imago, had caught up with her and stood to her right. Within a few seconds, they finally reached the magical barrier.

"With all due respect, ma'am, why am I accompanying you again?" Imago asked.

"I wanted somepony or changeling, whatever term you prefer, to talk to." She answered looking at him.

"Ummm, ok." He answered rubbing his forelegs confused. He eventually shrugged his shoulders.

As they looked into the barrier, they spotted the city from a distant.

"I'd guess we're about 2,000 feet away from the first building. I highly doubt we've been spotted." Imago informed.

"Tell me, have you ever encountered these barriers before?" She asked curious.

"Once, during the Canterlot Wedding, it's what gave us changelings a bad name in the first place. Have you?" He asked.

"They tried in the Crystal Empire, it failed though. My dad was always good at breaking things."

Looking down at where the barrier met the ground, she noticed that the grass was almost burnt. Glancing to her left, she saw Imago reaching out with his hoof, about to touch it.

"Regardless, if you hit the field hard it should-"

"WAIT," she shouts, grabbing his hoof and pulls him back.

She then found a nearby rock and kicked it into the field. To Imago's shock, the rock completely vaporized and turned to ashes.

"That could have been your hoof, will you please be more careful?" She suggested almost motherly.

"Who would use such lethal methods?"

"They must be taking everything to a whole new level in tactics, this is one of their last cities after all and they'll do anything to protect it."

"How do we get through though, last time we had Chrysalis on the inside to-"

"Here's an order from me…do what's natural to you."

"What?"

"You heard me, I do what I want and you do what you want. Be comfortable in your own fighting style, as in do what Chrysalis would normally have you do. I'll take care of this magical field and distract them."

"But it disintegrates anything!" He complained.

"My father taught me many things…but he didn't have to teach me how to do this!" She said, taking flight.

Imago watched as Maneful started to scale around the dome of magic before realizing what he had to do. He then flew back as fast as he could to inform his fellow changelings the news. Meanwhile, Maneful continued to scale the barrier until it leveled out on the top. Seeing where the magic dispersed out on the dome, she launched upwards into the cloud layer. Looking downward at the city, she took a deep breath before her wings light up bright purple. Putting her hooves to her sides, two huge balls of yellow magic formed before she dived towards the barrier. Before she collided into the dome, she extended her hooves forward, slamming the two yellow balls into it with a loud scream. From the outside, the changelings watched in awe as a huge ripple was sent downward on the barrier before it shattered like broken glass. By this time, Imago had returned.

"The barrier is down, what are your orders?!" A changeling commander shouted.

"Swarm." Imago replied darkly.

* * *

Maneful landed in what looked like a park, but it didn't take long for multiple guards to suddenly start surrounding her.

"Time to prove you wrong dad." She whispered.

The guards had no idea how to react when their armor was suddenly blown off. She used this to her advantage as she darted into the crowd of guards and got to work. Maneful preferred pressure points rather than brutal beatings. She wouldn't block either; she used evasion techniques such as flips and twirls as a defensive procedure. After just a minute, fifty guards lied paralyzed around her.

"Wow, I forgot I could even do that." She said with impressed.

She took flight to get out of the park and abruptly landed in the middle of a cobblestone street nearby. Looking around, she saw multiple unicorns set up on the ceilings with their horns glowing.

"It's an Element of Disharmony! Quick, sound the alarm and fall back!"

Maneful was confused when she saw dozens of guards practically running away from her. However, she did see a stallion running to what looked like a giant siren. Using her magic, she teleported right in front of the guard just before he hit the button and picked him up by the neck.

"You're way too slow…let me help you." She said, bringing her free hoof up to his face.

Maneful cocked back her elbow, hitting the button before punching the guard's muzzle. As he slid across the ground, the sirens went off.

"Now everypony will know you're here…" The guard said, smirking.

"What, you think I did that on accident? Ha, that was quite funny."

"You think that's funny…you should look up." He said before falling back unconscious.

"What do you…?"

Maneful gasped and quickly leaped away before fifteen magical blasts hit the ground decimating where she once was. Landing on a building, multiple pegasi landed next to her and attacked her. She smirked before ducking a few hooves that swung over her head before moving out of the circle and over their heads. She shut her eyes and started to fly around the guards hitting their pressure points before stopping to the side with a strong skid. Dust blew off the ground when her hooves came to a stop. More guards started come from the sky as the others fell. But every time she defeated a pony one by one, three more would take their place. It was starting to overwhelm her as she force herself out of this prostration, she teleports to the building's rooftop across from the previous one.

"Hey guys, I'm over here!" She said, making faces at them with the help of her hooves.

Out of anger, the pegasi leaped over towards her. What they didn't expect was that she teleported back to the building she previously was on. In the mist of confusion, Maneful grabbed one of the unicorn snipers and pointed his horn towards the group of pegasi.

"How'd it go again? Oh yeah, SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE FRIEND!" She yelled, yanking the unicorn's tail as hard as she could.

The unicorn yelped as a magical blast erupted from his horn. The blast was powerful enough to blow up the entire house but weak enough to knock out the pegasi. Turning around with her new, "cannon" she blasted the other unicorns nearby until there was nothing left.

"Well, that sure blew them away…I sound really weird." She said as her ears plopped down on her head.

"You don't say!?" The unicorn she was holding shouted.

She gave no second thought as she then football kicked the unicorn off the building. However, as the sirens continued, more guards came to fight. Pegasi flew above her like vultures while earth ponies occupied the streets while unicorns were stationed on buildings' rooftops. Maneful turned around to see three pegasi charging dead at her. Dashing forward, she grabbed one of the pegasi by the fore-leg and slammed him into the other. As the third approached, Maneful elbowed him in the face and then jabbed his neck. Letting go of his leg she turned towards another building ahead of her.

She then leaped to another building, encountering three more pegasi with two unicorns on separated buildings. As the two unicorns fired their magical blasts, she jumped over the first Pegasus and grabbed the third to use him as a meat shield. Multiple bolts of magic hit the poor Pegasus before Maneful dropped him. The second Pegasus charged her to avenge his friend, but she ducked under and jabbed the guard in the stomach. As he fell, the unicorns fired once again, but this time Maneful deflected the two blasts back at them.

The first unicorn was hit, but the second lunched out of the way and recovered. While being distracted, the Pegasus grabbed Maneful from behind and locked her in place. The unicorn took the opportunity to charge to full power before firing a huge beam of magic. Maneful quickly took control and she quickly flipped over the Pegasus, causing him to get hit. When this happened, Maneful returned fire by firing a light purple ball at the unicorn, causing a massive explosion. She then jumped off the roof onto another where even more guards awaited her.

Maneful's wings shot out from her back, creating a huge flare of light that blinded everypony watching her. She then made a mad dash towards the center of the city, quickly being followed by Pegasus guards. Free running from roof to roof, Maneful outran the pegasi while dodging magical bolt from nearby unicorns. Attempting to thin the numbers, Maneful spun around and shot multiple ball of magic that hit some of the pursuing guards. She did this several times before most of the guards caught up to her.

Jumping off another roof, two pegasi dived at her from both sides while five unicorns fired some sort of heat seaking beam at her. Reacting quickly, she unfurled her wings and launched straight upwards at a 90 degree angle, making the two pegasi crash into each other. Much to her discontent, the magical beams were only locked onto her and her only. Nearby unicorns adding their own magical beams to the mix didn't help the situation either, forcing Maneful to take an abrupt landing on another rooftop. Running in a zigzag pattern, Maneful evaded the beams that exploded all around her, leaving a trail of craters and smoke where she traveled.

With time square finally in sight, she dashed forward and took flight with the beams only mere inches from her tail. Approaching the last building before her objective, ten unicorns lined up in a firing squad and fired similar beams to the ones chasing her. Not backing down, she burst forward in a ball of light, and rolled under the squad before landing on top of a decorative fountain. Maneful watched as the blasts that the unicorns fired suddenly collided with the previous ones, creating dozens of semi large explosions that knocked the unicorns off the roof, but it wasn't over yet. Multiple pegasi and earth ponies rapidly started to surround the fountain while unicorns took positions from all sides on roof tops.

"Give up, Maneful, there's no point in fighting anymore!" A pony in a black and white tuxedo shouted through a speaker.

"Who are you suppose to be?"

"I am the senator of this beloved city and because of the war, ponies look to me for guidance. So I will say this kindly only once, leave my city while you still can before we are forced to take you prisoner."

"But I was getting used to the scenery, it's such a beautiful city at night, could I please stay a bit longer."

"You may act innocent, but your deadly."

"And you senators act honest but are really deceitful."

"This war has brought out the lowest out of all of us…but I can't allow you to destroy everything we have worked for!"

"It is ours now and there's nowhere else to run, out forces have pushed you to the very borders of Equestria itself! There's nowhere else to go or hide so I should be asking you to give up."

"You will have to make us, because we will never give up!"

"Very well senator but let me be the first to say..." She said, standing on her hind-hooves and putting her hooves in the air. "WELCOME TO YOUR END!"

Suddenly, everypony in the area started to feel vibrations in the air as a large buzzing noise approached the area. Looking up in amazement, everypony saw thousands of changling practically blocking out the full moon as they flew across the sky.

"ARREST THAT MARE, EVERYPONY ELSE, FALL BACK!" The senator shouted, making a break for it.

Maneful smirked as twenty pegasi charged at her, quickly followed by fifteen unicorns blasting barrages of magic towards the fountain she stood on. Maneful smirked evilly as she slid down the fountains base and landed in one of the three bowls on the fountain. She put her left hoof on the fountain and quickly spun around the base, rapidly kicking the Pegasus guards across their muzzles and deflecting the blasts. The result was a colorful blur of purple, red and green quickly knocking out each guard and diverting each blast of magic into the surrounding buildings. With the guards taken care of, Maneful rocketed into the air and flared out her wings.

Putting her hooves in an X shape while her wings covered her hooves, bright purple magic enveloped the mare. With the unicorns awe struck, Maneful let out an ear piercing scream as she let all the built up magic explode out of her in one burst. Creating a magical repulse that blew away any nearby buildings and created a large crater where fountain was. Slowly descending into the newly made creator, changelings gathered around, taking care of any guards and making sure the area was secured.

"You sure like to make pretty light shows." Imago smirked.

"I guess I do…sorry." Maneful said, rubbing the back of her head embarrassed.

"So what's the situation?"

"There's this senator pony that ran off with most of the guards, I'd imagine he's the guy to capture to make everypony surrender."

"Seems easy enough, what are the others to do."

"Attempt to leave the civilians unharmed, but if they get in the way take them out."

"Commander Maneful, we have most of the resistance corned in what looks to be a town hall." A changeling with distinct armor informed.

"That was fast…tell the others to watch the rooftops, these unicorns can be a pain if they're not dealt with properly."

"Groups four, nine, and twenty five, search the rooftops for any stragglers. The rest of you are with us." Imago informed.

The changelings nodded before launching into the air in a flash.

"Let's make this senator cry for his mother." Maneful said evilly.

* * *

"You said the force field would work!

"I wasn't expecting a Dis-element to break through the shield, senator."

"You had one job, and that was to make sure the shield would hold, Shrill Shot!"

"No…my job is to make sure harmony is not corrupted by evil."

"Look out that window, do you think you're doing your job!"

"Senator, with all due respect, I'm just a simple unicorn, I have no power of what happens out there."

"You're a commander, COMMAND THOSE PONIES TO SAVE US!"

"Ummm…can you guys stop fighting…if that's okay with you that is?" A timid voice asked from a corner.

"Fluttershy, will you please get back to safety? It's not safe here." Shrill Shot said with concern.

"Nowhere is safe anymore, commander." The senator commented. "And she's right, fighting will get us nowhere…it's time to evacuate."

"There's nowhere else to go, though." A mare said, cutting in the conversation.

"I know that the situation here is urgent, but this is my wife." The senator said with pride.

The commander bowed his head while Fluttershy hid behind her mane.

"So what is your name, my lady." Shrill Shot asked with respect.

"It doesn't matter at the moment." She said with aggression "The Changelings will be upon us soon and then there will be nothing left to do. We should devise an escape plan while we still can. So I'd say we take the underground route."

"Hold on…what do you know of escape plans?" Shrill Shot asked, a bit suspicious.

"I know plenty enough, tell him honey."

"Actually, I might have to agree with the commander here on this one." The senator said.

The mare was taken aback before she turned to the door.

"I need to talk to you…alone." She said before disappearing behind the door.

"I sorry guys…my wife is usually not like this." The senator said, following his wife.

A brief moment passed before Shrill Shot grabbed Fluttershy's hoof abruptly and pulled her to the side.

"I don't know what's going on her Fluttershy, but there's something really messed up about the senator's wife right now."

"H-how could you possibly know?"

"I…I don't know, It's something to due with those green eyes of hers, but you have to get out of here."

"B-b-but-

Shrill Shot silenced her with his hoof before opening the window.

"Use the darkness of night to escape, I'll create a flare to blind any nearby changelings to help, but don't break for it until I do so. Once that happens, get into the cloud layer and use them for cover. Got it?"

Fluttershy nodded rapidly, obviously being overwhelmed by fear and unsecurity.

"W-what about you?"

"Don't mind me, I'll be fine. Now wait for the signal on the top of the town hall."

As Fluttershy flew out the window, the senator came out of the door shortly after his wife.

"I change my mind, we shall take the underground route." The senator said with a dazed look.

"As your commander I would advise-

"He's already decided." The mare said, cutting him off.

"Very well, but I shall take a different path."

"And what of Fluttershy, is she not coming with us?" The mare asked.

"I'll take care of her, she's my responsibility."

The mare showed signs of annoyance before returning back to her smile.

"Very well, I wish you the best of luck…you're going to need it." She chuckled before the senator pulled a torch.

A secret passage was soon revealed, leading down into the dark. As the two ponies entered into the dark with a dozen guards, the mare pulled the switch inside, closing the door behind them.

"Shrill Shot there trying to break through!"

Five minutes earlier

Maneful waited outside along with her army of changelings that completely surrounded the building. Around the entrance of the town hall was a fortification of about one hundred and fifty earth ponies in full armor.

"WE HAVE YOU SURROUNDED! GIVE YOURSELVES UP!" Imago shouted.

"Don't try to reason with stallions, there a bunch of stubborn block heads." Maneful said with annoyance

"Then what are we to do?" Imago asked.

"We have to break their will to fight…or at least confuse them." Maneful said with an evil grin.

She whispered the plan into Imago's ear which he in turn smirked profusely. Four minutes passed before she then walked right up to the fortification and started the guard's captain dead in the face.

"Tell me captain, how well do you know your friends." She said almost seductively.

"Unlike you, I would give up my life for any of my brothers on the field." The captain said with courage.

"How brave of you, but have you ever heard of the phrase keep your friends close…"

All the changelings surrounding the building suddenly took the forms of those that were guarding the town hall, resulting in the guards to become frightened.

-and your enemies closer?"

The captain backed up in fear before Maneful tackled him to the ground.

"Take them."

The Changelings suddenly jumped over the fortification and got to work, knocking out every guard in sight. Meanwhile, Maneful slowly walked up the stairs to the huge doors leading inside the building.

* * *

"Remember my friends, we fight for what is right, for what is just!"

Formed behind Shrill Shot were fifty unicorns, ready to open fire on any intruders. Off to the two corners of the town hall were fifty earth ponies behind some sandbags. In the air were only thirty pegasi due to the loss of so many just hours before.

"Theses jerks have turned our friends into slaves for their cause, for their purpose!"

The earth ponies picked up their shields and lined them up according to their brethren.

"They have turned our beloved land into a war zone for their selfish gain, made our families suffer for their mistakes!

The pegasi started to bash their hooves together, making a huge ratchet.

"We fight for our freedom! For our brothers and sisters! Our family and our land! For our loved ones AND FOR EQUESTRIA!"

The doors shined bright purple before they exploded and fell over. Out of the smoke came a small filly that looked confused and scared.

"Mommy, I can't find my mommy! WHERE'S MY MOMMY!"

"What the…" Shrill Shot said in confusion.

Against his instinct and training, he approached the filly slowly.

"It's ok little one, I'll find your mother, but where on earth could she be."

"Right here."

Out of the smoke, Maneful slid into the surprised commander and applied her hooves into his chest. Before he could react, Maneful blasted a large magical ball into the commander, making him crash through the firing squad of unicorns and exploding. The blast made multiple unicorns fly into different directions, but the commander wasn't so lucky. He was sent straight through a huge stain glass window before he managed to catch himself on the railing. The remaining guards glared angrily at Maneful as she flipped her hair to the side.

"ATTACK!"

The pegasi swoop down while the earth ponies leaped out from their fortification to attack the mare. Maneful leaped over the crowd and landed in the center of the hall.

"Come and get me!"

As the remaining unicorns attempted to recover, multiple earth ponies and pegasi attacked without holding back. Maneful almost chuckled at their attempts to even hit her once as she constantly swayed and flipped out of the way. Losing interest, she infused her hooves with magic and started to brutally fight the guards. Each punch and buck would send guards and armor in all sorts of directions. Having to act fast, the unicorns joined in and started to free fire, hoping to make a difference.

It proved futile when Maneful would redirect it into another guard, absorb it with her wings, or simply slap it back at them. It soon came down to five unicorns, four pegasi, and two earth ponies.

"This was really fun, but all your players are eliminated. Hahahahahahaha!"

"SHUT UP!" An angry Pegasus shouted, charging at her.

Maneful fell on her back as the Pegasus attempted to punch her. She then scrunched up into a ball before bucking the pony into the ceiling. With her guard down, the other pegasi guards dashed towards her to avenge their friend, but they only punched through an image. They looked down the hall to see Maneful flipping away from the scene. When she landed on her hind hooves, the two earth ponies slammed into her from both side.

Maneful panicked and blocked their attacks with her hooves. The five unicorns quickly fired five large yellow beams from all sides, making the entire room shine brightly. Maneful's eyes dilated in shock before the blasts hit her, creating a ridiculously large smoke cloud and explosion.

"Did…did we get her?"

"I'd suggest you look up boys!"

Looking up, they say Maneful standing on the ceiling on her hind-hooves as if gravity was reversed.

"You almost got me, to think a common soldier almost got me." Maneful said out of amazement, folding her hooves. "It's too bad for the earth ponies though, they fought to the very end."

As the smoke cleared, it revealed the two guards blackened from the explosion.

"Don't worry, they should be fine, after all you were only trying to capture me right?" Maneful smirked. "Oh well, I guess it doesn't matter, here's your going away present!"

Maneful's wings flung open from her back, causing multiple feathers to fly out of her wings. As the feathers made contact with the ground they exploded in bright balls of purple magic. It was as if someone lit a thousand firecrackers at once. Maneful kicked off the ceiling and softly landed back on the floor before the filly approached her.

"Very impressive Maneful, and not a single changeling harmed." The filly said, reverting back into his original form.

"And I'm impressed that changelings can change into eight year old fillies and pull it off. You sure you haven't done that before Imago?"

"Eh, I try."

"There's just one thing left, the rest of you search the area for the senator."

As the changelings searched the area, Maneful made a slow approach to the now broken window to see Shrill Shot hanging on with only a hoof.

"I see still hanging around. Are you enjoying the view commander?"

She could tell that he was losing strength as he struggled to hang on. Looking over the edge, she saw the rest of the city just from her view.

"Well, I'll say that's a good five-hundred foot fall and I don't suppose you're good at flying either."

She then extended her hoof

"Take it…it's not worth wasting your life."

Reaching his hoof to hers, he then pointed it to her face and shot a bright ball of yellow magic, only for her to deflect it out the window.

"Fruitless…"

"Not exactly" He smirked.

The ball abruptly flew upwards before it flared brightly like the sun and disappeared.

"And what was that suppose to do?"

"Give us hope…"

The unicorn smiled before he willingly let go of the edge. Maneful looked at the falling unicorn in shock until he suddenly disappeared in a bright lavender flash.

"That was a long ranged teleportation spell…but nopony has that kind of magical potential except…Twilight…"

The moonlight fell upon her as some of the clouds cleared. She had won...but it felt off to her, like her cause had no meaning.

* * *

"We're reaching the exit, senator."

"Good, I hope the others are okay."

As he, his wife, and the ten guards stepped out of the tunnel. A black pony stepped out from a nearby tree.

"Hello senator, I hope your night is well?"

"Dark Fire?!"

The guards ran up to attack, but were suddenly ambushed by Ammisive, Stritin, Castigate, and Eccentric. The Senator looked to his wife before Desolent slammed him into the dirt.

"RUN DARLING, RUN WHILE YOU STILL CAN!"

The senator's wife glared at him before she took her place next to Dark Fire.

"Just like senators deceive others, so have you. Show him." Dark Fire said, smirking.

The mare's eyes glowed green before she burst into her previous form.

"I assume you got enough love for yourself Chrysalis."

"Where is she…WHERE IS SHE?!" The senator said in tears.

"Dark Fire, this pony is already corrupted." Desolent said wickedly, pulling on his mane. "Why don't we just end his pathetic existence."

"No, that won't be necessary…we've already won, and soon the war will be over." Dark Fire said, turning the senator around to the city. "Look upon your city one last time, it's the least I can do."

As the senator sobbed, Dark Fire gesture Castigate over to him.

"Do it."

A bright light was seen on the outskirts of the city, signaling the battle had been won. Now only one city remained…Los Pegasus.


	23. Chapter 15 B

**Authors notes: ****This chapter was written by a friend, writing style will be off. Reason why I had him write is was because I'm getting behind on writing, and because chapter 16 is like seven parts long and like ten-thousand words each. Luckily, I have summer break and stuff. I will try the best I can.**

**Chapter 15B: **Overprotective Father

Maneful, tired and relieved, walked through the door leading into her room. Yesterday was rough, amazing, and shocking. She fell flat on her bed, with sheets that matched the color of her appearance. she rolled on her back staring up at the ceiling progressing through the previous events that went on. Closing her eyes, some small images flashed before her. Images of the ponies she fought and the city she took over with Dark Fire. But they weren't proud images, she didn't show any sign of rejoice. Placing her hooves against her forehead, she groaned getting off the bed.

Looking outside of her window, she admired little of Canterlot's decor and sighted only boredom just by the overlooking sight of it. Walking out to the balcony, she sighed looking down at the garden below. Some guards were kind of enough to transport crystal flowers from the Crystal Kingdom all the way here. It gave her a small look esthetic that smoothen her homesickness just by the sight of their sparkling pedals. Sighing again, she went back inside and hop on top of her bed.

"Something wasn't right. Just being there, I thought it would be amazing, but...I feel like...it wasn't amazing. At first, I thought they would be kind of proud a little to see their princess come back to their kingdom and free them of Celestia's tyranny, but..." She paused and frowned before opening her eyes. She started to hum a melodic hymn before singing in a low mellifluous tone. "Alone...no...that's not how it goes." She muttered before hopping off her bed and heading towards her dresser. She took out a music box made of pure crystal and smiled softly at her reflection but frowned once she stared at her eyes. "How can I smile when I know something isn't right?" She muttered.

Walking back to her bed, she sat on top of it and opened the music box seeing a little filly with an orange coat and black mane kissing the nose of a colt with a white blue-green coat with a blond mane pony-tail. A soft melodic tune started playing off the music box as Maneful started to sing along with it, following its notes with ease and touches of oral heavenly tune.

_"Alone, for a while I've been searching through the dark,_

_For traces of the love you left inside my lonely heart,_

_To weave by picking up the pieces that remain,_

_Melodies of life-love's lost refrain." She sung softly._

She wasn't aware that her father was standing at the doorway staring at her calmly. He watched as his daughter sung with her eyes closed. Her voice was angelic and soothing, but sad and grieving. But this song; he remembered so well. Reminded him of her when she was a filly. Always gaining his attention with her skills of musical talent, wanting to explore the world and share it, only to be held back-secluded from reality that he surely plagued. And he knew it without denying it to even himself.

_"Our paths they did cross, though I cannot say just why_

_We met, we laughed, we held on fast, and then we said goodbye_

_And who'll hear the echoes of stories never told?_

_Let them ring out loud till they unfold."_

Sombra sat down and closed his eyes, allowing the voice of his precious filly touch his ear-and heart. Images of her being a small filly spending time with him in the castle that kept her shut in from the outside world ran like a film. They were voiced by her, and supported by the music. He felt like it was real that he could touch his little filly and give her piggyback rides like he use to do. But they were only memories, memories he could not touch or make up anymore. She was a grown mare now and he was too old.

_"In my dearest memories,_

_I see you reaching out to me_

_Though you're gone,_

_I still believe that you can call out my name."_

Sombra felt the sad feeling in his heart grow. He couldn't stop it, for these memories were sad to look at. He wish he spend more time with her like he used to. Opening his eyes, wishing for no more flashbacks. He waited for his daughter to sing her chorus.

_"A voice from the past, joining yours and mine_

_Adding up the layers of harmony_

_And so it goes, on and on_

_Melodies of life,_

_To the sky beyond the flying birds-forever and beyond." She opened her eyes and paused looking at her father shocked._

"Continue, I want to hear you sing more." He requested calmly. Maneful blushed embarrassingly before looking away.

"How long were you here watching me?" She asked.

"Till you sung the chorus, not long really." He answered. "I didn't know you remembered that song and still had that music box Princess-

"I do, okay?" She interrupted him by his mid-sentence.

"But what are you still doing here, don't you have business to take care of, dad?" She asked looking at him calmly.

"I do..." He sighed. "But I also have to talk to you. What were you thinking?" He asked as his tone grew worried.

"What do you mean?" She asked him confused before closing the box.

"Are you trying to kill yourself? You went behind my back and went on a mission to help Dark Fire, not saying it's wrong to help him, but you pretty much endanger yourself upon it!" Sombra said sitting down before rubbing his forehead frustrated. "You could have gotten kill."

"But I am still alive, so what, why does it matter to you?" She asked angrily.

"Because you are my only daughter. If I were to lose you, I wouldn't know how to liveproperly anymore. I might as well sign a contract with death if I lost you." He said looking at her.

"Dad, you are always keeping me inside; preventing me from seeing what the thrill of danger is actually like? Come on? I am still alive. I helped Dark Fire succeed!" She stated just before she set the music box down. "It was amazing, the best thrill I ever had in my life!" She said smiling.

"There's nothing thrilling about war. It is the most horrible thing, anypony could ever experience. Trust me, I been in war, and it's not pretty," says Sombra as he walks around the room pondering thoughts in his head. He was angry that his daughter went behind his back, but even more angry when she enjoyed it. "War is never pretty, it is ugly. Only a sociopath would believe it is beautiful and you are no sociopath. You are an innocent young mare who should be kept away from the darkness of society!" He said stomping his hoof.

"Darkness of society?!" She asked looking at him with disgust. "You should be the one to talk, Sombra!"

"You don't address your father by his first name. That's just putting my face in-between my flanks. You are insulting me!" He said hissing in anger.

"I don't care and I bet you too either." She said flicking her mane to the side. "Answer my question, because this has been pondering around my mind for a very long, long, looooong time! Is it true, what Celestia said all about you?" She asked expecting an honest answer.

Sombra gulped becoming nervous. He swore never to reveal the truth about him enslaving crystal ponies and forcing them through the acts of treacherous labor. He might as well been the world's most terrible dictator known beneath Stalin and the dead King Talos of the griffin kingdom. He poured lies within his daughter's mind, hoping it would keep her safe and loving to him. She was precious to him and he couldn't afford losing her love or subjecting her to his cruelty towards other ponies upon his control.

"Answer the question!" She demanded bucking the dresser growing frustrated.

"Yes." He answered calmly. He looked down, too shame from looking at her face. He knew the pain that was bearing upon her. Deceived from her own father. The only pony that meant a lot to her. He could tell, her dreams, her love for him, they crashed down just from the blunt answer. "I am sorry." He muttered.

"Sorry?" She asked as her voice was laced with pain of deception. She sat down and looked down shocked. "Sorry doesn't even make up for any of that nonsense you told me when I was little. Why?!" She shouted.

"I-I wanted to keep you safe." He said.

"Safe? Safe from myself!? Safe from the madness you caused when I was little, keeping me away from the dark secrets you surely hid?! Tell me, **Sombra**, what were you keeping me safe from?" She asked glaring at him angrily as her wings flared open in an intimidating stance. "Why would Celestia even keep you away from me?"

"Because...I was a cruel dictator amongst the Crystal Kingdom. I enslaved and forced ponies to suffer under my labor. I humiliated them, made them suffered beyond everything for my amusement. I wanted them to see that I was their king, master, god! But I didn't want them to see you, vulnerable for them take and use against me." He said staring at her with a sadden expression. "I don't blame them, honestly. Even I was losing control over myself. Celestia and Luna persuaded me to free these ponies, but I didn't listen and spite them. They fought back and won, casting me to the abyss. When I came back out, seeking for my kingdom and you, those elements of harmony vanquished me. That is when Dark Fire brought me back to life, well, back to this form. I was never dead, honestly, I was curse by them to not die but suffer for my sins. The crystals sure made me lose my mind, but the fear of losing you was the worse. She did what any ruler had to do." He said.

Maneful looked at him shocked before frowning. She started to sob wiping her tears away from her eyes. "You know-I always believed you were the best dad. The greatest dad in this world. One who ruled better than any king, especially Dark Fire. But I guess I was wrong. I wish he didn't bring you back. I wish they didn't curse you. I wish you were never my dad. As much as it pains me to even talk to you...I..." She bite her lower lip as tears started to dribbled down her eyes. "I wish you were dead and I was not your daughter!"

Sombra looked at her frozen in shock. He felt pain echoed around his heart like a knife piercing through cold skin. He wanted to say something, but he couldn't. His mouth opened but no words came out. His eyes blink but no tears shed. His ears started to dub everything out. but the only thing he heard when it came back in a split-second was the music box. It played slowly; burning his eyes, regaining his senses and reactions. When he blinked again, he was too late to shed a tear in front of her in time. Maneful smacked him by the right side of his cheek before running away crying.

He stood there, looking at the ground feeling the burning sting on his cheek. "I'm sorry." He muttered as tears started to slip down his eyes. He looked at music box and slowly walked to it. He stared at his own reflection. But in his reflection, what he saw wasn't who he wanted to see. He saw the pony he hated the most. The pony with no heart. The pony who broke his daughter's heart. He opened it and watched as the two colts played together under their kingdom of Alexandria.

He started to mutter in a sad painful soft tone, following the pattern of the song. And as he sung, he closed his eyes and pictured his daughter exploring the outside world with him as a filly. And his kingdom basking in the golden age. Nopony were enslaved and forced to work. Everypony was happy, in peace, and proud that they had a king like him.

_"So far and away, see the bird as it flies by_

_Gliding through the shadows of the clouds up in the sky_

_I've laid my memories and dreams upon those wings_

_Leave them now and see what tomorrow brings."_

Maneful flew to the top of the kingdom's rooftop weeping and sniffing. She started to softly sing to her favorite song. Wishing that it would soothe her of the pain that fell before her.

_"In your dearest memories,_

_Do you remember loving me?_

_Was it fate that_

_Brought us close and now leaves us behind?" She sung._

_"A voice from the past, joining yours and mine_

_Adding up the layers of harmony_

_And so it goes on and on_

_Melodies of life,_

_To the sky beyond the flying bird-forever and on!" Sombra sung._

_"If I should leave this lonely world behind,_

_Your voice will still remember our melody_

_Now I know we'll carry on_

_Melodies of life,_

_Come circle round and grow deep in our hearts-" Though they were far apart, Sombra and Maneful both changed their tune to sync with each other at the same time. "As long as we-remember."_

Sombra closed the box looking out the window. He frowned shutting his eyes. "I'm sorry, my daughter." He muttered.

Maneful got up and look ahead before shedding her last tear. Her wings opened and she flew off into the sunset. Her tear fell all the way down till it touched the music box, Sombra set on top of thebalcony rail. He looked up shocked before sighing after seeing that there was nothing up there. "I need to make up my mistakes. I need to find her." He said looking at the sunset basking in its rays of sadness.

"Sombra, you alright in here?" Dark Fire called walking into the room.

Sombra looks at him wiping away his tears. "Yes, I am alright," he says walking by him quickly.

"Woo...what's the rush?" He asked looking at him.

"Nothing!" The former king snapped before looking away shamefully. "Nothing." He muttered gritting his teeth. He looked at Dark Fire and sighed before walking away with his head down.

"Because of us, she ran away."

"Wait, who?" Dark Fire asked confused.

"Maneful." Sombra answered as he turned around glaring at him.

"She ran away? Why?" He asked.

"Because...I broke her heart. This would have never happen in the first place if you didn't take her back here instead of letting her participate in your world domination. Because of...our mistakes, she ran away. I don't know where..." He paused and gasped.

"So it's my fault? Sombra, I wasn't aware she was in the city by the time we had the Mayor surrender." Dark Fire said looking at him offended. "I have nothing to do with this."

"I know where she is." He muttered looking out the window.

"Are you ignoring me? You know how I hate being ignored!" Dark Fire shouted as Sombra walked to the window and opened it. "Hey, pay attention to me!" He yelled, but Sombra softly sighed before leaping on the edge. "Woo! What are you doing, you don't have to kill yourself just because she ran away!" Dark Fire panicked.

"I know where she is. Sorry for blaming you." He said calmly as he leaped out the window.

"SOMBRA, YOU CAN'T FLY!" Dark Fire yelled running to the window. When he looked down he watched as Sombra descended fast to the ground. When he reached the end of his fall, his body exploded into a dark form of miasma. It took the form of a serpent slithering around the kingdom. "What the-" Dark Fire was cut off when Sombra roared flying to the sky before heading straight towards the sunset. The windows in the kingdom shattered to pieces and as he flew off, the garden Dark Fire soon look down at was completely turned into a garden of crystals. Looking around, he facehoofed and yells, "YOU KNOW HOW MUCH THESE WINDOWS ARE GOING TO COST ME, SINCE YOU BROKE THEM JUST BY ROARING!?"

Dark Fire back up from the window and heard a 'Clink' behind him coming from his right hind-leg. Looking back, he spotted Sombra's crown and picked it up with his two hooves while sitting down. "Why would he drop this?" He wondered before looking out the window. He narrowed his eyes at the sunset. "Wait a minute...HOW IN THE NAMES OF NAMES IS THE SUN EVEN-" He was cut off when the a large explosion from up ahead blew a large dark cloud over the sky. He facehoofed again when it began raining. "Great, you even blocked the sun. Dang it, CLEAN-UP! ON AISLE FIVE!" He yelled before trotting away frustrated.

Darkness was only saw echoed by the sounds of a young foal crying.

_"It is-a girl. A girl, my lord. A healthy baby girl." A female voice was heard sounding excited._

_"A-a girl?!" Sombra yelled._

_"Yes, a girl. Here, my lord, hold her." She said._

_"I-I don't know what to do. What should I name her?" He asked._

_"Whatever name pleases you, my lord." She said. Suddenly she started coughing causing Sombra to gasped._

_"Corona Dust!?" Sombra yelled._

_"A mane full of colors that represents her beauty, don't you think?" She asked coughing more._

_"Take deep breaths. Doctor, something's wrong!" Sombra yelled._

_"Her heart is slowing down. She is going to cardiac rest and if she does, she won't wake up!" He yelled._

_"Yet, just by looking at her, she might be the sneakiest filly you can ever find in this world. Heh, look at me...making assumptions in who she is going to be." Corona Dust said sounding weak._

_"Corona, hang in there. Come on, you can't leave me now! CORONA, what about our daughter, come on?! Corona, CORONA, CORONA!" He yelled._

_"Sombra, what's her name?" She asked weakly._

_"Her name-her name-is-" _Sombra opened his eyes staring at a small house. "Diamond Rose." He muttered to himself feeling all of his energy being drained away after transforming to his serpent form. So much magic was used up in him, he was starting to feel dizzy and become unbalance whenever he took a step forward.

When he walked up to the door, he knocked, but no answer came back. "Diamond Rose, open the door!" He yelled, but no response came. He knew she was in there, he felt her presence near and it was best to assume she was inside securing herself from the outside world and him. He rest his back against the door and looked up.

"You are all that I got left in my life. Please, understand that I only lied to protect you. I am so sorry, and I know you heard that from me for so long, but you must also understand that I mean it from the depths of my soul."

Yet again no answer came back in return. Sombra closed his eyes and heard thunder crackled in the sky. Looking up, he opened his eyes seeing through the dark branches attached to trees, rain coming down. Images flashed before his eyes as he saw a ceiling of dark ice. Looking around he saw more ice and darkness. He was alone. Just as he always was. Blinking twice, everything went back to normal. The cloudy dark skies of weeping rain was back before him. To remind him suffering. An illusion? He wondered before it laid in his thoughts. He shook his head attempting to clear it out.

"And yet again, I am here alone. Force to prostrate here in his lament regardless of his sins. Even if he tried to make up for them, he still suffers. He is fated to this cold abysmalistic sadness. It is how his life goes on, how his road extends. And how it will end before he sees it or after he sees it coming? He will not know until it stabs him cold in the heart." He muttered closing his eyes as the rain drench his coat.

"So, you were afraid?" Diamond Rose asked causing Sombra to slowly open his eyes and look at his daughter looking down at him from the rooftop frowning. She too, was wet in the rain that continued to pour down. "You were afraid that you couldn't protect me and so you kept me within the kingdom, away from the outside world." She said.

"Am I...dead?" Sombra asked weakly.

"No, what made you ask that question?" She asked looking at him confused.

"Because...I can't feel anything anymore. I don't know why though, maybe I used up too much of my magic to look for you. So, it is hard for me to believe that you are actually talking to me or just a simple hallucination. If this is all a dream, then, I wish to wake up. I wish this never happened. I want to make sure none of these bad events occurs ever and forever again." He said.

Diamond Rose flaps her wings and descends next to him. She turned his face towards her before her right hoof collided hard into his right cheek. Sombra spat out blood rubbing his muzzle painfully from the strong smacked.

"Does this seem like a dream?" She asked in a stern tone.

"Ow." He muttered looking at her. "No," he answers.

"Good, now if you don't mind. Answer my question." She said sitting down.

"Yes, I always fear loneliness, who wouldn't honestly," he asks frowning.

"Then why were you not nice?" She asked.

"I needed to establish a role in letting all of them know I was in charge. Heck, the princess I overthrew was a big example just before you came into this world. I was so over myself in power, that it forced me to not realize that I was hurting you. I was lying to you. I am not the greatest dad as you once thought. I could never believe you whenever you say 'You are the best daddy, ever' for I knew that was not true." He said resting his head back.

Diamond Rose looks down and grits her teeth.

"You didn't have to lie, you know? I feel like a fool, a pathetic fool for even believing your lies. What I said about being glad that Celestia casting you to the abyss. I actually meant it, just because you lied to me for so long. You deceived me. You shattered my happiness!" She said starting to sob.

Sombra looked down before glancing up at her.

"I know," he says rubbing a tear off her right cheek, but she smacks his hoof off and backs away.

"Nothing is as it seems. Not when I am around you. I...I can't believe you anymore. I don't want to believe you anymore. But something in me is telling me that you meant those words. That you feared of being alone. Who wouldn't fear that, unless you are an anti-social type of pony. I...I want to be alone. I don't want you visiting me until I come to you and see..." She paused and looked away. "If we could make up our amends."

Sombra frowned again before looking back up at the raining dark sky. "I...understand." He muttered. Everything was silent now except for the crackling thunder and the cold rain. Both father and daughter had their eyes shut. Diamond Rose right eye slowly wept a small tear while Sombra' left eye did the same. In-between these two was a ethereal like mare wearing a hooded white cloak.

_'Diamond Rose, are you crying?' He thought._

The hooded pony looked at him and nodded her head before vanishing away. But as she vanished, the sky went with her. The sun's rays pierced through the clouds. But even as its rays penetrated the clouds, they gave a gloomy gray background for Sombra as he opened his eyes and slowly looked around. His daughter was gone. He frowned and got back up and slowly limped away across the wet muddy road.

Behind him was small feather matching Diamond Rose's coat color started floating down before touching the small puddle in front of the door of the house. Attached to it was a small note that wasn't wrapped around it too well. When it opened up, it was a small letter from its owner.

_"In my restless dreams, I see that town. Outside the castle's window in Canterlot. A small town, only a pony with good vision like I, could see. A town full of happiness that corruption could touch and harm. I feel a connection to that town. A certain connection none could understand. But only you. I...I understand that you are now depressed, who wouldn't be? But I just wanted to let you know, that I am too and the only way we, yes, WE, could ever solve it is if we stick together to the end. As an happy family. I am not sure if you ever will come and see me. Maybe you will if I told that...I need you here...with me...and our foal._

_I know you are trying to keep everything under control, and it is alright. I clearly understand why you keep me away from that place. Those ponies are smarter than any of us could imagine. But, I need you here. Celestia and Luna still doesn't know, I never told them about you. I never bother even mentioning your existence or even the origin of the kingdom I came from either. I didn't want them to go after you. But now, I am here, in this town full of happiness and relief that I am sure you need. Please, come...I'm so lonely._

_I didn't really had a name for our foal, and I was hoping you gave one to it. Anything of your choosing. I hope to see you again, and bring a doctor just in case if you ever come. I hope you come. Here in this town, I will be...safe and sound happy as any mother could ever be. With her foal in arms and her mate by her side that she loves. A mother I am and will be, will be the happiest mare you ever could have and see._

_-Corona Dust"_

**-To Be Continued-**

**(The song, sung in here is called Melodies of Life from Final Fantasy 9**

**The songs recommended to be listen too...**

**Gabriela Robins/Yoko Kanno-Moon,**

**Giles Lamb- Dead Island Trailer Theme Raindrop version,**

**Garbage- Not Your Kind Of People)**

**Ps: I will edit this more when i get back earlier today...i hope.**


	24. Chapter 16 A

**Warning:**** This chapter, and the character Desolent, is the main reason why the fic is rated teen. He is also the reason I might change the rating to mature instead of teen because the things he does are both brutal and disturbing. This is what makes up the character and his personality, making this character a main villain all on his own. I could be overacting but i'm warning you just in case.**

**P.s: I love comments, it makes my day to see my viewers happy with the chapters. Heck, even tell me what you would like see in the fic, i might even add it. Lastly, for the guest viewer that noticed that the mane six seemed powerless in the fic...i got you bro, just you wait. **

Chapter 16 A: Corrupted beyond believe

One day earlier

"I know of your methods Desolent, but if you abuse your power over the soldiers I will assign you there will be dire consequences. Do I make myself clear?"

"Does it seem like I care?"

"Listen to me! This is the last city that needs to be taken before we win the war, I will not accept brutal punishments or executions to your men or civilians. We have an image that we are to fulfill and you break it at every-

"Dark Fire I will tell you this right now…I don't care. Unless you give me Twilight alive I will do what I want without any remorse! If you see differently, why don't you get your, 'great and powerful apprentice' to help you!"

"You can't still be upset about-

"I AM THE MOST POWERFUL UNICORN IN EXISTENCE! BE GRATEFUL THAT I EVEN WORK FOR YOU!"

"Please…all I ask is for you to show mercy on this city, I don't want thousands to suffer-

"You do it every day Dark Fire, why should I be an exception?"

"I….

"That's what I thought."

Desolent turned around and left, throwing on his dark cloak and hood before vanishing in the darkness.

"What have I unleashed upon those poor souls?"

* * *

"Dark Firrrreeee…Dark Firrrrreeee…" A disturbing voice whispered.

A beam of light shinned upon Dark Fire as he was completely surrounded by darkness.

"W-what's going on…I was just in my room."

"Why have you forsaken us…"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Dark Fire heard distant screams as the seen around him changed into Canterlot…but different.

"Why have you enslaved us…"

Looking around, he saw everypony around him in chains, being forced into hard labor while fire blazed in the distance.

"I never did this! I never wanted to do this!" He said, frightened.

"Why have you deceived us…

The scene changed to a familiar room, the throne room, only this time is was sinister. He saw everypony in the room bowing to…him, but he looked different. He had a kings crown while holding the black book in his hooves, laughing evilly at the scene before him. Looking closer, he saw that he had wings, but pointed like thorns with red tips.

"ALL HAIL DEATH FIRE, THE TRUE KING OF EQUESTRA!"

The "king" stood up on all fours and smirked.

"Let us show the world that we are a nation to be feared and respected! LET US SHOW THE WORLD WHO THE TRUE RULLER OF THIS PLANET IS!

The scene changed again, showing very familiar countries in ruin and despair. He heard screams of all ages and races screaming for mercy and forgiveness, begging for it to stop.

"Why have you torment us.. ."

All of a sudden everything around Dark Fire exploded in a wild fire, showing familiar faces melt away before his eyes. Dark Fire felt a wave of fear overcome him as his life flashed before him.

"Stop…stop this…I'VE HAD ENOUGH!"

The scene changed one last time, this time it was a grave site. Looking around frantically, he saw the names of everypony he had ever meet and befriended. Looking forward, he saw his own name written on the stone, with an empty grave.

"No…NOOOO!" He shouted in fear, running away from the sight.

Tendrils abruptly launched out of the grave and grabbed the terrified unicorn, slowly dragging him back. Dark Fire dragged his hooves along the ground, hopping to grab onto anything, but was not so fortunate. He screamed in terror before the grave swallowed the unicorn, cutting off any light. The darkness vanished suddenly as fire enveloped him and the area around him.

"FOR CRIMES AGAINST EQUESTRIA AND THE WORLD, YOU ARE SENTENCED TO ETERNAL SUFFERING IN THE PIT OF HELL!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Dark Fire's eyes suddenly opened, lifting up from the bed as he screamed bloody murder before he realized he was back in his room. Trixie and a dozen guards rushed in the room in panic.

"DARK FIRE, WHAT HAPPENED!" Trixie shouted, rushing over to him.

Dark Fire couldn't even speech because of his hyperventilation. As Trixie turned his head, she noticed that he was sweating and was blazing hot to the touch. His eyes were also dilated as he continued a thousand yard stare. Without warning, Dark Fire hugged Trixie and lightly sobbed.

"I'M SO SORRY…I'M SO SORRY!"

"Guards, Trixie will deal with this."

The guards nodded, leaving the room.

"Tell me what happened." Trixie said.

"Nightmares…so many nightmares."

"Have you asked Nightmare moon about it?"

"She didn't know what it meant, and told me that she couldn't view my dreams. That there was something blocking any outside force from entering my mind. Plus, she is busy fixing the sun problem from the last chapter."

"Lay your head down."

Dark Fire did what he was told and laid his head back on the pillow. Trixie gave him a warm smile as she allowed magic to flow freely to her horn. She then applied it to his forehead.

"She's right, there is a blockage in your mind, but it was placed there by…something. Do you have any idea who did this to you?"

Dark Fire scavenged through his memories as a child, but almost all of them were either blurred, full of sadness', or just non-existent. The only thing he got were those three words that burned in his skull.

"Celestia must parish…" He whispered.

"What was that?" Trixie asked.

"Herus…that's who."

"You've mentioned him-

"It Trixie, it's a being that is alien to this world…I have never seen anything like it."

"Explain."

"It's all a blur…but it was defiantly not a pony."

"Do you know anything else?"

Dark Fire reached under the pillow and took out the black book.

"The beings that made this book, are the same race as him."

Trixie stared dumbfounded until a guard ran into the room.

"Prince Fire, I have some terrible news."

"Then speak." Dark Fire said.

"The city of Los Pegasus…it completely gone…there were no survivors."

Dark Fire stared at the guard in shock before it hit him.

"When Desolent arrives...tell him to meet me in the main hall, he has some explaining to do."

"Sir, he was nowhere to be found, and most of his army has vanished."

"You may go now solider, your job is done."

The guard exited without another word.

"Celestia was right, Desolent cannot be controlled."

"What are you going to do?" Trixie asked worried.

"I don't know…but he can't go on like this and we still need to find Maneful."

* * *

Hours before…location: Outskirts of Los Pegasus.

"Through the sins of my forefathers and fathers, I shall bring these pathetic ponies to their knees."

Desolent was standing in the middle of a dark red rune, surrounded by dim candles. In front of him was a shrine of what looked like a pony with black robes.

"Fill me with your power, so I may bring those unworthy to our cause to the sweet embrace of the void."

Levitating multiple ingredients and putting them into a bowl, he chanted a phrase before lighting the ingredients on fire.

"LET ME BE YOUR AGENT OF DESTRUCTION AND DESOLATION!"

The candles fires shot up into the air, crating pillars of fire around him. When everything calmed down, he sat down and removed a book from a nearby chest.

"The Necronomicon…my beloved teacher."

"Desolent the-

"HAVE I NOT TOLD YOU TO ASK BEFORE ENTERING MY SANTUARY!" He said, placing the book close to his chest without turning around.

"Ummm y-y-yes, but the soldiers a-are b-b-back-

"You disobeyed a direct order! You will pay for your insolence!"

"No Desolent, please forgive-

Desolent's horn glowed dark green before he turned around and fired at the guard. The pony screamed loudly before he suddenly vanished in a black cloud of smoke. Turning back to face the shrine, he opened his book, as if nothing had happened.

"I wonder if anypony before me ever understand how to read this, much less cast its spells. I suppose it doesn't matter, nopony could ever comprehend it's power." He said, flipping through the book. "How to rip out souls, turn a pony inside out, command the dead…there must be something else I haven't learned yet."

Flipping through multiple pages rapidly, he became frustraited before he found a page that cought his eye.

"Make a city…"

His eyes continued to scan over the words eventhough he had stopped reading.

"Yes…this shall do perfectly." He whispered, forming a demonic grin before the dim candles went out.

* * *

"Is this what comes to those that are innocent…"

Maneful couldn't believe what she was staring at. What she saw was a fairly small village, not too far from Los Pegasus, completely desecrated and destroyed. Dime fires still filled the homes that were once filled and smoke continued to rise from the burnt wood. Walking through the city was a nightmare come true, everywhere she looked was devoid of life. Reaching the center of the village, she saw a wooden stake with a fillies doll nailed to it. Behind the slightly burnt doll was a piece of paper with writing.

'Let this be a reminder to all that contest me and my power. Before you lay the ruins of a once former town that rebelled against my orders, now it is nothing more than a ghost town. I shall show no mercy to anyone that stands in my way…no exceptions.'

Desolent's signature could be seen at the bottom of the page, written in blood. Maneful looked at the doll one last time to see blood stains covering the doll. Maneful couldn't help but fall on her knees and sob into her hooves.

"We have become instruments of torture and pain…why?" She whispered, continuing to sob.

"Because you allow yourself to believe this."

Maneful turned around, completely shocked by what she saw.

"Celestia? But I thought you were imprisoned."

"All will be made clear within time, Diamond Rose, but for now you must return to your father."

"Why should I?! He lied to me and betrayed me just like cadence said he would. Im nothing but a fool to belive such a lie before my very own eyes." She said, continuing to sob.

Maneful looked away from Celestia in shame, attempting to hide behind her mane. She was shocked when a hoof was placed on her back.

"That's not true Diamond, you have a heart as big as the sun, you care for your fellow ponies just like a real princess should."

"But I failed…I FAILED AT THE ONLY THING I COULD EVER DO!"

"Diamond!" Celestia said in a stern tone. "Being a princess is not easy, but I doesn't have to be tragic. We all make mistakes, especially me."

"You, make mistakes?! Now I know your lying to me."

"I'm not perfect Diamond, and you know that."

"Why should I even believe you, why should I even trust you?!"

"Because I will always remember that look of terror when I took your father away."

The destroyed town around them suddenly transformed into the Crystal Empire, more specifically, the scene where Sombra made his last stand. The two glanced at the scene from a bird's eye while Celestia made her point.

"How old where you when this happened?" Celestia asked.

"I…don't remember; everything is a blur now." Maneful responded.

The two continued to watch from a distance as Sombra stood on the balcony to face the princesses.

"This is your last chance Sombra!" The image of Celestia shouted. "Free these ponies of their bondage before it's too late!"

"Or face trail and punishment for your actions!" Luna added.

Sombra gave a stern look as he faced his intruders and gave his answer.

"No."

Sombra's horn shined brightly with red color as his eyes took on a more sinister look. Suddenly, black crystals formed around the king and the entire land of the Crystal Empire.

"Tia, this has gone far to long, we must act together before he brings all of Equestria into darkness!" Luna said with rising concern.

"So this is how it must end." Celestia said with a heartbreaking tone.

While Sombra was reciving power from the crystals, Celestia and Luna combined their powers together as they flew side-by-side. Acting as one being, they eclipsed the sun as bright light burst out from their bodies.

"FOR YOU'RE ACTIONS YOU ARE HERE BY SENTENCED TO ETERNAL CONFINEMENT FOR THE REST OF ETERNITY!"

"LEAVE US ALONE!" Sombra shouted in anger before a large black beam fired from his horn.

The two celestial beings released their power in a large burst of light. The black beam was instantly vaporized along with the crystals that surrounded Sombra and the kingdom. Sombra looked in horror as the rays of light made contact with his body and in a huge flash of light, he had vanished. The scene abruptly stopped as time froze around them.

"What's the point of this?!" Maneful asked aggresivly. "All you have done is shown me the pain of my life once again."

Celestia's horn glowed once again, reversing time by only a few seconds just before Sombra had vanished. She then guided Maneful onto the balcony only a few inches from where Sombra stood.

"Look closer…"

Maneful stepped forward, hesitant by the fact that it was her father suffering before her eyes, but then she noticed something. Something she wouldn't have noticed in that split second of time. Her father was turned around, gazing inside the castle and…in tears, right before her eyes. It was something she had never seen before throughout her whole life. Making eye contact with the frozen figure, she attempted to pinpoint exactly where he was looking. That's when she saw it, what Sombra was gazing at the entire time…her. Maneful couldn't believe it, but right before her was herself as a small filly, watching in terror as her father vanished before her eyes.

"I failed to see why Sombra truly became corrupted by the crystals." Celestia said, appearing next to her. "It was because he was trying to protect you from…us."

"I…I don't understand." Maneful whispered.

"He forcefully used the Crystals to give him the power to defend you form anything that would try to harm you, even if it meant the loss of his empire and his sanity." Celestia said with sorrow.

"No, what he did was cruel and unjust to everypony in the Crystal Empire, how could you of all ponies say he was innocent!"

"I did at one point, but behind every action is a reason, this was his action…and you the reason."

"So it's all my fault then!" Maneful shouted angrily.

"No…but you are the only one that can save your father. You are the only one that can reach his true self, and you are the only one who can redeem your family."

"But I don't know how! I don't know what I'm supposed to do!" Maneful said with growing sadness. "Everything I have ever believed in was a lie! What could I possibly do to redeem my family?"

"All will be made clear with time."

"And what of my friends and Dark Fire, are they to suffer for their mistakes? How could I save them as well?"

"Whether you know this or not…but they feel just the same as you do, even Dark Fire."

"BUT WHAT AM I SUPPOSE TO DO?!" Maneful screamed. "I'm just a silly princess with no knowledge of the outside world."

"You have a purpose in all of this Diamond Rose…we all do." Celestia said, as the scene around her started to fade along with her. "We are all created with a purpose, no go…and save your father from his curse."

Everything around Maneful faded, putting her back in the destroyed town. Wiping her tears, she rose to her hooves.

"No more will I idly stand by and watch others suffer, no more will I be sheltered from the world of madness. I AM PRINCESS ROSE, AND I WILL NOT TAKE THIS ANYMORE!" She said, flying off in the direction of Canterlot.

* * *

"You have failed my solider. Three times I have told you to take this city, three times you have returned empty handed." Desolent said coldly.

"There *pant* was to *pant* many of them." The unicorn said in fright.

"I…don't…care." Desolent whispered in his ear.

He suddenly grabbed the unicorn's horn and snapped it clean off. The unicorn burst out in screams of pain and agony as two guards pulled him away from the scene.

"Hold it!" Desolent commanded, tossing the dismembered horn to the unicorn. "Let that be a reminder to you."

Desolent looked around at everypony staring at him in mixed emotions of fear and anger. The sight before him was a depressing one. Most of the soldiers were either starving or wounded; many more were captured in the fortress of Los Pegasus. Desolent couldn't care less though, taking the term "you work for what you eat" to far.

"Let that be a reminder to all of you if you fail me! Dark Fire might be lenient to all of you, but I will beat the failure out of you if I have to! We will attack again, but this time we will use all our forces. "

"But Desolent…we have been fighting for weeks and lost more than half our stallions. Look around you; this is all we have left, just a hoof full of casual soldiers. Plus the fortress is impenetrable and we have no food...please, we need to rest." A guard said weakly.

"You are right soldier." He said, slowly approaching the guard. "Regular stallions need to rest…"

Everypony in the area turned blue in the face when Desolent abruptly slammed a dark green energy ball into the pony's face, causing a large haze of green smoke.

"So rest in peace…"

Desolent turned around and gave everpony a dark look.

"NOW AS FOR EVERYPONY ELSE, I DON'T WANT TO HEAR ANOTHER WORD!" He shouted, walking up to what was left of his army. "In fact, I want you all to observe."

"Observe wh-

Desolent used his magic on the guard as quickly as he spoke, causing him to chock himself unconscious.

"Yes…observe, for I will do this job alone, just like I had wanted to do from the beginning. Which means all those who are left are either obedient to me, or never complained. You are all relived of your service and are free to watch the destruction of Los Pegasus if you wish." He said, walking over to a cliff side. "And when Dark Fire asks what happened here, tell him that there were no survivors."

A loud screech came from above the tree levels that startled the nearby guards. Desolent extended his fore-hoof to the right as a large gray falcon landed on it. In the falcons beak was a scroll and a dimly glowing black crystal.

"You have returned with the crystal, my obedient pet." He said, petting the bird with magic. "Now let us bring annihilation and destruction upon our enemies." He said as black smog started to form around him before vanishing.

All the remaining guards looked around at each other before dropping their gear and running away panicking.

* * *

Desolent calmly reappeared several yards away from the cities massive wall. Without any movement or removing eye contact from the wall, he shot a large beam above the city. The result was the beam converting into a large green dome that covered the entire city. He turned around and opened a hole in the shield.

"Leave this place Ravager, this won't take long…"

The falcon took flight and flew out the gaping hole in the shield before it was sealed up again. Desolent turned around once again to face the wall with a dark look. As his horn glowed dark green, he stood up on his hind-legs and outstretched his fore-legs to the left and right of him. His hooves glowed dark yellow and black as he slowly raised his hooves into the air. Suddenly, the walls of the city started to glow the same colors as Desolent's horn before it slowly started to levitate off of the ground. Desolent smirked at his handiwork before letting out a bloodlust roar that filled the heavens. Meanwhile, the walls started to shake rapidly before they were abruptly thrown away from the city in a large explosion.

Only the main entrance to the city remained, but not for long. With the swelling energy building within his hooves, he threw his hooves forward, firing the dark yellow energy into the entrance like a torpedo. The result was the entrance being imploded into a small ball and then exploding violently. He was nowhere near done though, for he only intended to make it worse. Jumping forward, he slammed his hind-hoof into the ground, causing the ground to shatter beneath him and sending multiple cracks around and through the city. Slamming his other hind-hoof into the ground, he caused even more fractures to from.

Desolent could only laugh maniacally as he used his magic to divide the cracks in the ground, causing a large earthquake within the city. As a final demonstration, his hooves shinned bright yellow as he raised his hooves into the air and screamed. The cracks started to shine bright red before large pillars of fire and magma sprouted from them. Ash started to fall into the city as the atmosphere turned dark red from the fire and lava.

"Yeah, that'll do." He said to himself before teleporting into the city.

He looked around and smirked at all the destruction that he caused in such a short time. Homes burning in flames, ponies screaming in pain, it was all music to his sadistic ears. A city that had such a strong defense and protection over its ponies suddenly being turned into what looked like hell was just what Desolent wanted to see. It didn't take long for what remained of the guard to assemble in front of him, despite the ciaos. Only this time, the guards didn't bother to ask for surrender.

"We know exactly who you are, and what you have done is unforgivable to Equestria. By the grace of Celestia, WE WILL BRING YOU DOWN!"

Desolent continued to smile wickedly as he began to slowly walk forward, despite their threat. The guards, uncaring about the destruction and lava, charged at the unicorn courageously. When they got within five feet of him, they stopped abruptly and started to levitate a few inches off the ground. Desolent continued to stare forward as he stopped his walking, not bothering to even look at the scared ponies around him.

"I don't normally talk to my victims, but what did you hope to accomplish by blindingly charging at me?" He said, pausing for a response that would never come. "Because surly, if you knew who I was, you wouldn't have been so foolish…and do you know what happens to foolish ponies..."

The levitating ponies couldn't respond even if they wanted to because their nerves felt like they were about to explode.

"They never see the dark of night again."

A loud snap was heard as the levitating ponies hit the ground simultaneously around him. During this, more pillars of fire and lava started to erupt from buildings as another earthquake started to commence, making the previous version seem like an aftershock. Suddenly, clouds of ash flew by unicorn, burning everything in sight. As quickly as it came, it left, covering the roads with dust and debris. A faint glow was seen around the demented unicorn as he continued to walk, acting like nothing had ever happened.

Any resistance Desolent met along the way were either to weak to fight due to the harsh environment, passed out from lack of oxygen, or were easily defeated from his dark magic. It must have taken an hour for Desolent to finally reach the center of town, or what was left of it that it. The town square was in complete ruin, with collapsed buildings and veins of magma flowing freely through the center. Behind him was a trail of bodies, unknown to the naked eye if they were unconscious or…deceased. As Desolent approached the very center of the city, marked with eight magma veins flowing into each other, he removed the black crystal from seemingly nowhere.

As he slammed the crystal into the center, creating a splash of lava in the process, he chanted a few phrases as magic flowed to his horn. While Desolent was distracted, the last of the guards slowly surrounded him and gave one last request.

"Please…we surrender, stop this madness. We have families here that are dying because of this…we'll do anything, just please make it stop." A guard begged.

"We've suffered enough from this war." Another guard added.

"None of us want to see this go on anymore."

"Please listen to us."

Desolent showed no emotion as he removed the enchanted scroll from its container.

"That's what I told them…but none listened to me as I watched…watched my mother's life pass before my eyes. Watched the only one that cared for me stoned and burned along with my pride…WATCHED AS THE VERY SAME PONIES TURNED ME INTO A HEARTLESS MONSTER!" He screamed as the scroll vanished from thin air.

As Desolent laughed maniacally, his horn turned black as night before he focused the dark magic into the black crystal. Within seconds, the crystal fired a dark beam into the sky, causing everything around it to turn bleak. The ponies around Desolent were terrified as their fur started to turn black.

"ISN'T THIS WHAT YOU WANTED?!" Desolent laughed insanely. "YOU TURNED ME INTO THIS FATHER, AND NOW EVERYPONY HERE WILL PAY FOR IT WITH THEIR SOULS!"

The guards eyes went wide as they felt their entire body becoming numb and cold.

"WITNESS THE END EVERYPONY, AND SUFFER FOR YOUR SINS! HAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA!" He said, shooting one last beam into the crystal.

The crystal spun rapidly as it skyrocketed into the sky and with on large flash of light, the entire city of Los Pegasus...vanished. Only Desolent remained in the field that once held a massive city. He silently stood still as the dark crystal hit the floor abruptly in front of him. It gave a faint purple glow as Desolent picked it up with his magic.

"And so the war ends…with all of Equestra under our control, and all the weaklings put in their place." He laughed, bringing the crystal closer to him. "Hehe, I can still hear them screaming in there…but not for long."

What Desolent did next was unthinkable. He tossed the crystal into the air and simply swallowed it in one gulp. His eye twitched in discomfort as the crystal slowly descended down his throat, but then something sparked. His white hair shinned brightly and his dark green fur glowed before pure energy exploded from his body. He took a deep breath before he finally took control of his newly found power.

"Now there is only one thing left undone…Twilight Sparkle."

**So...who doesn't hate this character...**


	25. Chapter 16 B

Chapter 16 B: A deadly but caring influence

"It has been eight long months scene the day I took the throne…but now…now it is official."

Dark Fire stood in front of the throne facing a large audience of sophisticated ponies and guards alike. To the right of him were Trixie, Chrysalis, and Nightmare Moon. To his left stood Zepher, Sombra, and Discord. They all shared similar royal attire as they waited for Castigate finished up his speech, leaving Dark Fire was lost in though

"I have taken over…I've truly won…tyranny if finished…and we shall take their place as the new rulers of Equestria." Dark Fire whispered.

"Finally, after months of war against our aggressors, we can safely say that Equestria is truly free. Here before you now are your hero's and liberators, your rulers and leaders. Let us officially commemorate them for their selfless acts and their sacrifices." Castigate declared.

Several ponies, mare and stallion alike, came out from the back rooms and stood behind the new rulers. Only Dark Fire was excluded.

"Discord, Master of chaos and Commander and Chief of our armies!" Castigate announced.

Stardancer smirked as she held the badge in front of Discord.

"You're going to have to pay me for it." She whispered.

"Cool story bro." He said as the badge vanished and reappeared on his suit.

"Chrysalis, Queen of the Changelings and Archduchess of Equestria!"

Imago flew above her to place a golden crown, but was puzzled by the already place crown on Chrysalis' head.

"Um, my queen…there's already a crown-

"I know I already have a crown, we'll fix it later." She whispered back anxiously.

Imago awkwardly placed the crown on the back of Chrysalis' head, making it seem like she had two crowns.

"Sombra, King of the Crystal Empire and Arcane Council Master of Equestria."

Maneful couldn't help but smile when she placed the crown on his head.

"Well daddy…you did it, I'm so proud of you." She said with a goofy grin.

"Funny, I should say the same for you." He said abruptly hugging her. "I love you so much."

"I…I love you to daddy!" Maneful said, tears building in her eyes.

This was enough to bring tears of joy to Sombra and make the audience "awwww" at the scene. Dark Fire, on the other hand, had a look of embarrassment.

"Oh my gosh that is so cute!...Uh I mean, can we hurry this up." Castigate said, blushing.

"I love you too." Sombra whispered before letting her go.

"Anyways, moving on. Nightmare Moon, Princess of night and nightmares, and Archbishop of Equestria!"

Stritin proudly put a dark blue and gray crown on her head before making a quick bow.

"Zepher, son of the former princess Celestia, but now redeemed as the Major Ambassador for Equestria!"

Shinning Armor came out and presented Zepher with honorary gray and red robes, representing their empire.

"I would like to add that this stallion is single…just letting you know." Castigate said, smirking mischievously at Zepher. "And now we have Trixie…" He said, walking up to her. "The Princess of Equestria and…my beloved sister."

Everypony that knew Castigate had a look of shock and bewilderment by his comment. All except Trixie, who simply stood there with an un-amused look.

"For years I had always hated her blindly, despised the very dirt she treaded on, thought I was better than her in every way. Thought she was such a fool…well that's probably still true."

Trixie's facial expression still remained the same as he continued.

"But in reality, I was the foolish one. I only felt this way because I was jealous."

Now it was Trixie's turn to be confused.

"Jealous of the fact that you were loved by your…our mother. Jealous that she loved you just as much as me, and all I have to say is that I'm truly sorry. You're my sister and I love you."

The room was overcome by silence until Castigate suddenly glowed light blue and was flung into Trixie's embrace.

"Do you realize how long I've waited to hear those words from you?" Trixie said, almost in tears. "I love you to brother."

"So you forgive me after all I've done?"

"Of course I forgive you." Trixie said, hugging even tighter.

"Yes, another bet won." Castigate whispered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing…nothing at all." He said, putting a gold and sapphire tiara on her head. "And now…the moment we were all forced to see."

Dark Fire rolled his eyes before some of the ponies chuckled at the comment.

"He's been our adored ruler ever scene he over through Celestia, stayed with us throughout the war and made sure everyponies needs were meet. He's the only black pony to rule Equestria-

"Make a racist joke and I will fry you." Dark Fire said casually.

"His name…IS DARK FIRE, THE PRINCE OF DARKNESS AND TRUE RULER OF EQUESTRIA!"

Everypony burst into cheers as a gold and ruby crown was placed on him.

"AND IT IS BECAUSE OF YOUR ACTIONS THAT WE PRONOUNCE YOU…PRINCE OF EQUESTRIA!"

As the cheering continued, random fireworks and confetti exploded inside the room and all over Canterlot.

"ALL HAIL THE NEW RULERS OF EQUESTRIA!" Castigate shouted.

"ALL HAIL THE NEW RULERS OF EQUESTRIA!" Everypony repeated.

Dark Fire took a leap forward in the heat of the moment.

"AND AS MY FIRST RULE AS PRINCE, I DECLARE AN ALL OUT PARTY AND CELABRATION!"

And what a party it was, one of the biggest Canterlot had ever had. It went on for weeks, going from typical party food and drinks to rave parties and rock concerts. Courteously of Dj Pon3y and the Elements of Disharmony, because who knew the elements could play in a rock band called "Elemental chaos". The war was over, but was it really won…

One month later…

"There's still no sign of Twilight or the resistance anywhere. There's reason to believe that they have either fled the country or went into hiding." Ammisive stated.

"And what about Desolent…any signs of him?" Dark Fire asked.

"Every since he went rogue, there have been no sightings. The only place left unchecked had been the Everfree Forest, but Sombra says the dark magic there is…almost frightening recently."

"Explain."

"Well, for starters, harmless creatures have been more aggressive, attacking anything that approaches their territory.

"Isn't that a natural response?"

"Not in Equestria sire, tell me how often you hear about a beast taking out a squad of guards."

"What?!"

"Ok let me explain."

* * *

"You called for assistance sir?" Ammisive asked.

"Yes finally, this beast has been terrorizing the streets of Ponyville for days now!"

"What's your name?"

"Caramel, and I had no idea they would send a Dis-element for this job."

"Meh, I was board. Age?"

"Twenty-four."

"Class?"

"Low-mid."

"Occupation?"

"Grass farmer."

"Grass farmer?" Ammisive asked.

"Yes, I plant grass seeds."

"So you *snicker* plant grass?" One of the guards asked before getting hit on the shoulder.

"Yeah, it pays the bills."

Most of the squad was engaged in a losing battle to contain their laughter.

"Ok then Caramel, lead the way." Ammisive said, pushing him forward.

When Caramel cut the corner around the house, all the guards and even Ammisive burst into laughter.

"Are you guys coming or what?" Caramel asked.

"Yeah, yeah…just let us catch our breath."

Couple of minutes later.

"So the beast lives in the forest." Ammisive asked.

"Yes, but be careful."

"Ok guys, cover me." Ammisive said, stepping forward.

"With what?" One of the guards asked.

"Just do it."

"TOO LATE, GET DOWN!" Caramel yelled.

Everypony hit the deck.

"Ok guys, remember to stay calm and keep your cool, this thing will rip you apart if it's pushed in the wrong direction." Caramel added.

Everypony glued their eyes to the forest until a white rabbit hopped out into the open.

"There it is." Caramel whispered.

"I don't see it." One of the guards said.

"It's right there."

"What, behind the rabbit?" Ammisive asked.

"No, it is the rabbit."

Ammisive and the guards froze in place in shock until Ammisive stood up abruptly.

"YOU SILLY DOLT!"

"What?"

"You had us all worked up!"

"Well that's no ordinary rabbit! That's the most vicious, cruel, and heartless rabbit your eyes will ever see!"

"You idiot, I almost pissed myself because I was so scared." A guard added.

"This thing is a killer, mouth big as a mile!"

"Yeah sure."

"It will rip you a new one."

"What a bunch of bull."

"I'm warning you!"

"What he do, bit your flank?" Another guard added, mockingly.

"It has huge, sharp teeth. It can move faster than your eyes can see!" Caramel warned.

"What a waste of time…you there, knock it's lights out." Ammisive ordered.

"Right." The bright colored Pegasus said, putting on his helmet.

It didn't take long for the pegasus to approach the rabbit, snickering as he went. Well, up until the point where the rabbit leaped into the air and kicked the guard across the head, knocking him out cold and shattering the helmet into pieces.

"HOLY SWEET MOTHER OF NIGHTMARES!" Ammisive shouted in shock.

"I tried to warn you, but did you listen, no! Nopony listens to the casual grass farmer, Nopony at all! Oh it's just a silly rabbit, what can that do." Caramel mocked.

"Oh will you just SHUTUP!" Ammisive said, getting onto his hooves. "CHARGE!"

The squad went ahead of ammisive, who followed close behind. However, within less than a couple of seconds, the rabbit bounced between each guard like a pinball and knocked all of them out. Ammisive made a sudden stop as he slammed his hooves into the dirt, attempting to get back to cover. Sadly for him, the rabbit sat mere inches from his face.

"Can we talk about this?" Ammisive asked.

The rabbit shook its head before flicking its paw into Ammisive's muzzle, sending him flying through a building.

* * *

"So how did you solve it?" Dark Fire asked.

"Ummm…well…can ponies eat fried rabbit?"

"Ammisive…ponies don't eat meat."

"That's what I thought…" Ammisive said as his face turned light green before running to a nearby bathroom.

"This is ridiculous, my element being outclassed by…A RABBIT!" Dark Fire said, enraged. "I'm going to check this myself…*yawn*…man, it's too late for errands and it's almost night time.

"But it's always night time." Ammisive said, walking out of the bathroom.

"Whatever, just watch Trixie until I get back." Dark Fire said as he teleported in a red mist.

"Me…watch…Trixie?!" He said, feeling nervous and shocked. "I guess I've lived a normal life…."

* * *

"Wow, Discord really did a number on this place." Dark Fire said, walking to the entrance Ponyville. "How long has it been scenes I've been here…it all seems…abandoned."

Ponyville was indeed abandoned, but that wasn't all. The town itself was practically destroyed. Dark Fire continued to walk until he reached the broken down majors house.

"This doesn't make any scenes. Ammisive was just here, how could the whole town be…desolated."

As quickly as it came to him, he rushed through the doors of the mayor house, only to find it completely destroyed. Tables where flipped over, books were scorched, and the ceiling looked like it could give way at any moment. Without any second thoughts, his horn illuminated bright red.

"Discord, when was the last time you checked on Ponyville?" Dark Fire asked, telekinetically.

"Why do you sound so panicked?" Discord asked.

"Just tell me!"

"It's been like two weeks…what's wrong?"

Dark Fire couldn't take it anymore. As his horn lost its glow, he fell to his rump, completely surrounded by rubble. Silence overtook the atmosphere as he sat there in sorrow.

"How am I supposed to be a prince, when I can't even protect my own…"

Moonlight shinned through the cracks of the walls, giving the dark pony a scene of guilt and responsibility.

"I have to find survivors, if there are any." Dark Fire said teleporting to the first place that popped into his head.

Unfortunately for him, it was the very same place his heart turned black as night…Twilight's house. The memories of pain and heart broke hit him like a ton of bricks as it replayed over and over in his mind. It was enough to make anypony insane. It didn't take long to get inside, but when he did, his fears had been realized.

"It's a shrine...what's a shrine doing in the middle of Twilight's living room?!"

He already knew the answer, but was too stubborn to admit the overwhelming evidence before him. On the shrine was a note in red ink…or what was believed to be ink. He ripped it off and read it aloud.

'Dark Fire, if you happen to stumble across the shrine before Twilight, consider yourself fortunate, for you will get the warning before her. I want Twilight alive and well, doesn't matter how you do it. For I want to prove to you that I am the strongest unicorn in existence and show you the error of your ways. The day you made Trixie your apprentice was the day we became enemies Dark Fire, that is on your head, but first things first. I, WANT, TWILIGHT! Disobey this order and I will leave every city of your beloved empire in total destruction!'

"Has he gone insane…I'm still more powerful than and I gave him the element!" Dark Fire yelled.

'Now I know what you're thinking, and once again, you're wrong. I have equaled, if not surpassed your power and will no longer follow you unless you bring me Twilight. But as an incentive, I will make this more interesting. Find her before me, and I will spare your empire and submit to you, as long as I'm considered your equal. This means that I will learn everything you know about magic and energy manipulation, plus an equal seat of power in your empire to rule.

However, if I find her first, I will come after your beloved Trixie as well! Same deal applies for her to, but it also applies to me as well. Because when she has met her fate, you will be next. My demands have been made…I suggest you listen to them.'

Dark Fire sat in silence before he angrily crumbled up the letter and threw it.

"That ungrateful &$**" Dark Fire shouted enraged. "THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY ME, WITH VIOLENCE AND DESTRUCTION?!"

However, the burning memory of what Desolent had said a month ago still burned in his mind.

_"Please…all I ask is for you to show mercy on this Los Pegasus; I don't want thousands to suffer."_

_"You do it every day Dark Fire, why should I be an exception?"_

He was right, everything he had done was only a reflection of Dark Fire, so why should he be an exception. Was it because of his guilt, his fear of overthrow, or was it to protect the ponies he cared about from turning into him. Whatever the reason, he had to move on and find survivors.

"HELLO!" He called, with increasing doubt. "If you can hear me, make your presence known! I'm not here to hurt you!"

Many times he called, but there was still no answer. He continued to walk down the streets of what once used to be full of life, full of smiles and laughter. Now...now it was a barren wasteland, and he only had himself to blame. Before he almost broke down in tears, he saw movement to the right of his eye. Unaware of what it was, he extended his hoof and pointed it to the direction of the noise.

"Make any sudden movements, and it will be the last you make.'oh what am I saying, do I really mean what I say anymore?' He thought to himself.

Only then did the figure make its appearance known, but it wasn't anywhere close to the size of a pony. It was more like a filly or colt, put with more fur. Dark Fire casted a light spell to finally see what this thing was, but when he saw it he was more shocked then relived. What stood in the light fearlessly was a black dog, a cairn terrier to be exact. It just stared at him with the darkest brown eyes he had ever seen.

"What, a dog...you got me all worked up little guy. Oh what's the point, now I'm talking to dogs."

During Dark Fire's ranting, the dog quickly ran up and bit his leg, causing Dark Fire to yelp.

"What the heck was that for you jerk!"

The dog took no time at all to run inside the broken house once again.

"You thing you can just run away, just like that!" He said, chasing after him.

When he bashed through the door, he saw a saddening sight. The black dog was sitting right next to a large pile of rubble, but it wasn't the rubble that caught his attention. What lay under it was a white west highland terrier, unconscious and wounded. The black dog looked at Dark Fire with sorrow before returning its gaze to the white dog.

"So that's why...I should have known."

Dark Fire approached the white dog slowly and noticed a red collar on its neck.

"Brandy T." Dark Fire read. "Well I guess that's your name…but what are these numbers below it?"

The black dog barked in annoyance, as if saying to hurry up.

"And what about you?" Dark Fire said, looking at his black collar. "Shadow T." He read. 'Yep, its official, everyponies name is now shadow. It's even common to dogs.'

"Well, regardless, it would seem as if Brandy is in a tight situation.'Oh god, that I really just make that pun' He thought."I don't suppose you've ever seen magic before have you?"

Shadow stared in anger and growled

"Ok, ok...gees."

The rubble glowed bright red before it was lifted off the white dog. A loud sound of inhaling was heard as the white dog took in oxygen rapidly.

"We have to get you to a hospital or something, until then try not to breath to hard; it will damage your lungs."

Picking Brandy up and setting her on his back, a loud snapping noise was heard from above. It could only mean one thing.

"THE WHOLE ROOF IS COMING DOWN!" Dark Fire yelled.

Going by instinct, he blasted a hole in the wall and leaped through it. He ended up in another building just before the rubble collapsed behind him.

"Oh no…I FORGOT ABOUT SHADOW!"

Dark Fire felt like an idiot when he realized that Shadow was literally in front of him. It was just too dark to see.

"I guess that's how you got your name...funny, that how Night Shadow got his-

"Who's there!"

Dark Fire's ears perked up at its sound, knowing exactly who it was.

"Please...don't hurt us." The voice said, timidly.

"You silly girls, why would I want to hurt you."

"Night Shadow?" The voice said as it got louder.

As the figure stood in the moonlight, it was revealed to be Scootaloo. Only thing different was that her coat looked like it hadn't been washed in weeks, and looked like she was starved.

"Scootaloo, who is it?" Applebloom asked from a distance

"It's Night Shadow."

Only then did Dark Fire piece the puzzle together. They were either unaffected by the hatred wave or uninformed of the...change.

"Night Shadow...well where has he been for nine months?" Applebloom asked.

"How should I know?"Scootaloo said, annoyed "Well, where have you been?"

Keeping to the shadows and using his dark coat to his advantage, he responded.

"Uhh...you see...it was some party, I don't remember much-

"What do you mean, 'don't remember much". Sweete Belle asked, coming out from her hiding place.

"I don't know ok…what happened here?" Dark Fire asked, trying to change the subject.

"How should I know know, we all got locked in here by the guards, said something about a rampaging green unicorn."

"I bet you could have taken him Nighty." Scootaloo said, with a smile.

"Well...that depends on the circumstances." Dark Fire replied

"And why are you hiding in the dark? There's light you can stand in." Sweete Belle said.

"I...uh...prefer my darkness. It keeps me focused."

"Speaking of darkness, what's up with the sun anyways?" Scootaloo asked.

"Yeah, mah brother said it was some kind of statement for the new prince or something." Applebloom said.

"Oh don't tell me he supports him to?" Scootaloo said.

"Wait, support what?" The dark unicorn said.

"This guy called Dark Fire, he calls himself a prince but he's really just a big jerk!" Scootaloo said in anger.

"He took mah sister away!" Applebloom yelled.

"And mine." Sweete Belle added.

"Well, no, not really...they are umm..." Dark Fire tried to say.

"But now you're back Night Shadow. With you on our side, we can save our sisters." Applebloom said with rising joy.

"Wait, it's not that simple!" Dark Fire said, in panic

Without a second though, Applebloom grabbed the pony's hoof and pulled.

"With you helping us, we can save all of...

Applebloom dropped his hoof in shock, realizing his hoof was still pure black. Dark Fire quickly pulled back into the dark, fearing the worst.

"You're...you're...

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO NIGHT SHADOW?!" Scootaloo shouted.

Even if she didn't mean to, those very words stabbed right into Dark Fire's heart

"YOU TOOK OUR FAMILIES AWAY!" Sweete Belle shouted, in tears. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO THEM!"

"WHERE'S NIGHT SHADOW!" Scootaloo yelled, attempting to hold back anger.

"ALL OF YOU SHUTUP!" Dark Fire said, attempting to hold back tears. "I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING TO NIGHT SHADOW!"

"I DONT BELIEVE YOU!" Scootaloo screamed.

"I NEVER DID ANYTHING TO NIGHT SHADOW BECAUSE I AM NIGHT SHADOW!" Dark fire blurted out.

Everypony went into complete silence.

"Part of him that is...why do you think we have the same physical appearance."

Stepping into the rays of the moonlight, his face was expressing shame, allowing the fillies to judge him for themselves.

"Do you need any more proof..."

In their minds, they believed it was just another lie, but for some reason they wanted to be sure.

"Ok, tell me what we did when we were at Fluttershy's cottage." Scootaloo said.

"Was this before my introduction or afterwards...

"Afterwards."

"You were talking about how Rainbow Dash was better than me, thinking I cheated in the Iron Pony competition. You then got into an argument with Applebloom before you decided to make hot chocolate...a little bit too hot.

As Dark Fire retold the story, attempting to hold back more tears, Scootaloo slowly started to believe him.

"You also decided to dye my hair pink...and then attempted to cut it. Looking back at it now, it was a bit funny." He said in complete sadness.

Several minutes later

"I stayed up all night, making sure you were all safe before my strength faded away."

The room was enveloped in silence as Dark Fire finished.

"You really are Night Shadow." Scootaloo said, with sorrow. "Then why...why did you betray us. Why did you-

"I DONT KNOW WHY OK!" Dark Fire yelled, causing an eco. "I always thought I knew...but I was just blind…and I still am."

"Then stop this nonsense Night Shadow, your only hurting yourself."

"I wish I could…but what I've done is unforgivable and no amount of forgiveness with save me."

"Sure it can." Sweete Belle said. "We're your friends; we're all your friends."

"Now you're the one's lying to me."

"What about Rainbow, Pinkie and the others. They cared so much for you, Twilight cares for you."

"STOP TELLING ME LIES!" Dark Fire screamed, losing what little restraint he had left. "I saw it for myself. I watched as all my 'friends' abandoned me before my eyes, never spoke up for me! After all I did, THAT'S HOW THEY REPAYED ME!"

"You're only lying to yourself." Applebloom yelled.

"AM I, AM I REALLY! THEN WHY WOULD TWILIGHT THROW ME OUT ON THE STREETS!" Dark Fire screamed, plopping to the floor, bawling. "Told me I was a waste of time, nothing but trouble…told me to never come back. I loved her so much, and she broke my heart. Now…now the only thing I can do is break her's."

"It's not too late though, there's still a chance for you." Sweete Belle said, with grief.

"She's right, anypony can be forgiven." Applebloom added.

"I want to be…but Celestia won't forgive me."

"Yes she will, she has always been-

"No she hasn't. The moment I give up my power...will be the last day I see life again."

"She would never-

"I KNOW FOR A FACT SHE WOULD! Chrysalis, Sombra, Discord, all of them defeated without remorse or care. We're just insignificant to her, body bags for her experimentation of punishment. And no matter how much I want for this violence to end...I just can't let Celestia punish my friends that way...especially to Trixie."

The fillies had nothing left to say, being shocked that Celestia would even do such acts

"So you see, I must remain in power for the safety of my friends. But sometimes...a leader must do what is right, even if others will be harmed...

With that said, three magic blasts shot out from Dark Fire, hitting the three fillies.

"What...did you...do..." Applebloom tried to say before falling unconscious.

The other two lasted a bit longer before hitting the ground alongside their friend.

"The Shape you three where in was critical and I couldn't just watch you three suffer. At least now your will be safe with me."

Looking back at the two dogs, he noticed that Shadow was maintaining Brandy to the best of his ability. With Brandy losing conscious, there was little time to lose.

"I think it's time we all went home."

One day later

"Man is there nothing good on this stupid talking box!" Eccentric said in annoyance.

"I believe Dark Fire called it a 'television" Castigate said, propping his hind-hooves onto the table.

"Will you two hurry up; I'm tired of being the electrician for this thing." Ammisive barked.

"Wait hold on, I want to see the stock-market." Castigate said, grabbing the remote.

"Nope, you had your chance."

"Just a bit longer, then you can go back to sleep or something."

"Hey guys." Stritin said, walking in sheepishly. "What time is it and what's on the talking box?"

"It's a Television you dolt." Castigate said, almost annoyed. "And it's like nine in the morning...or night...OR WHAT EVER MORNING IS NOW!"

"And quite frankly, nothing is on at the moment." Eccentric added.

"So did Maneful eat breakfast yet?" Stritin asked, sitting down at the table.

"No, she's sleeping in today. Something I should have done." Ammisive said, leaving the T.V.

"Hey, I was watching that." Castigate said, aggravated.

"To bad, I want to eat something, and you can use your magic...lazy bum."

As everything calmed down, Dark Fire entered with his usual bed hair.

"So Darkie, what's up besides your hair?" Castigate joked.

"Well, you try sleeping with a mare the likes to cuddle all the darn time!"

"Some would say you got lucky Dark Fire, I mean, we don't have marefriends." Ammisive said.

"Well I had one...I didn't work out so well." Stritin said

"Well anyways, while where still on the subject of Trixie, what did you get her for her birthday."

Dark Fire was drinking coffee when he said this, thus spitting it out all over the floor.

"HER WHAT NOW!"

"Her birthday, what did you get her?" Castigate asked again.

Dark Fire stared at the floor, motionless.

"You forgot didn't you..."

As if on cue, Trixie walked in.

"Hey guys…and Dark Fire." Trixie said with a smile. "So what's going on today, anything special."

"Actually, Dark Fire was just about ready to give you something...right Dark Fire." Castigate said, nudging his shoulder.

"Oh really...well, I'm waiting." Trixie said with a smirk.

Dark Fire quickly turned around and looked at her with bloodshot eyes and screamed out gibberish before he darted out of the room.

* * *

"You forgot her birthday…I don't know whether to be sorry for you or disappointed." Chrysalis said, chuckling.

"She never told me, it's not my fault." Dark Fire said, panicking.

"She expected you to ask, us mares are like that, complex." Nightmare said, almost prideful.

"Well I don't like it; they need to be more straight forward."

"You're asking for the impossible here my friend, trust me I would know." Sombra stated.

"You're not helping here."

"You could always get her a rose or chocolate…or why not both." Discord suggested.

"I'm dead, I am so dead." Dark Fire said, sitting in a corner and cowering.

"Ah, love…it's such a wonderful and dreadful emotion." Chrysalis sighed.

"Don't you feed off of love?" Sombra asked.

"Yeeeah…" She sighed again.

In response, Discord chucked a huge paper mashay heart at her, causing it to burst into chocolate.

"WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT FOR?!"

"Look everypony, mint chocolate."

"OH YOU ARE SO DEAD!"

Chrysalis lunged at Discord, completely covered in molten chocolate. Discord chuckled as he pushed his lion paw into her face, forcing her to stay in one place while she swung frantically with her hooves.

"Stop being such a coward!" Chrysalis shouted.

"Come now Chrysie, use your head."

"I'M TRYING!"

"Hey, what's going on in here?"

Everyone in the room turned to look at Trixie before vanishing out of the room. Well, all except Dark Fire, who was still cowering in the corner.

"Dark Fire, is everything alright? You look a bit…flustered."

Dark Fire shivered in his place before sighing loudly.

"Actually Trixie, there is something wrong, will you walk with me."

Dark Fire stood up and walked out of the large room as Trixie followed, worried. He led her to a huge balcony with hundreds of beautiful flowers illuminating under the star lit night. In addition to this, all of Canterlot could be overlooked, shining brightly from a distance. There was also a faint sound of voices and music that filled the ponies' ears, presumably another party. Dark Fire took a seat in the grass, motioning Trixie to sit beside him. Trixie stated off into the city, admiring its magnificence and liveliness.

"It's beautiful isn't it? All the building, lights and trees, it's all so breathtaking…and it's all ours, along with all of Equestria. Can you believe it?"

"Trixie admits there are days where she thinks it's all a dream. That I would just wake up to the life she used to have." She said, staring into Dark Fire's eyes. "And I have you to thank for it."

"Well, do you ever think of how it could have been?" Dark Fire asked

"What do you mean?"

"Like...do you ever regret the things you've done."

"Yes, there have been times...what are you saying though."

"I never earned this, I took it...I never worked for it, I stole it. But the real reason why I brought you out here was because I was so busy being selfish that I forgot-

"There's no reason to be sorry...after all, I never told you when my birthday was anyways."

"AH HA, I was right!"

"What?"

"Nothing, nothing at all."

"Anyhow, Trixie understand your pain. We all have had times of regret."

"You don't understand what I go through."

"Dark Fire, I'm your marefriend...at least try."

"Even if I attempted to, there would still be too many unanswered questions for you...and me. But aside from my babbling, what would you like for your birthday..."

Trixie thought about this for a long time before giving her answer.

"I want an end to this constant suffering and war."

"But the war is over, we've won."

"Physically...but not mentally."

"I don't understand..."

"You told me that you used the hatred wave and the Elements of Disharmony to turn all the ponies against Celestia and the royals."

"Yeah..."

"Well, now remove it and show them what a true ruler is"

"You realize that's the only thing keeping the ponies in line. With that gone and their memories back, who knows what will happen."

"Try with a small group...if it doesn't work, you have to keep trying. This will levitate some of your regret, I hope."

"Fine, I'll try. Anything else?"

"There is one last thing...and it will be the best gift you could possibly give me, aside from you, of course."

'Oh how adorable.' he sarcastically thought

"I want you to capture Twilight...and bring her to me."

'Well that escalated quickly' Dark Fire thought "Why, I thought you were done with that grudge."

"Even though Trixie would like to get revenge on that mare, it's not only about Trixie anymore now is it. With her capture and defeated, the resistance will crumble and thus ending any chance of an uprising. There, 'acts of terror' will be over and done with for good."

"I...don't know if I can-

*DING

"If I find Twilight first before you, then all of Equestrian will suffer! And then I'll come after your precious "Trixie" next."

The memory of that message continued to play in his mind, knowing that Desolent was fully capable of such an act. He mentally agreed, nodding his head in approval.

"Good, I'm glad could be settled." Trixie said, walking away with a smile.

'Not only will this make Trixie happy, but it will ensure the safety of Twilight as well. With her under my protection, Desolent would have to come straight to me to claim his prize. If all goes well, no pony will parish ...'

One hour later

"Zepher, have you seen Maneful, we need her for a mission." Stritin said, standing at his door.

"No actually, the last time I saw her she was trying to steal my books,"

"Have you checked her room?" Zepher asked.

"Yes, she wasn't in there. You can check if you want."

"I guess I will, it's not like I have anything else to do."

With one teleportation spell, he appeared in Maneful's room. The room was decorated like royalty, curtsey of Sombra. It had the same colors of her coat, to a dark purple carpet, to red painted walls with green lining. The only thing missing was the pony herself.

"Maneful, you in here?" He asked.

There was no answer, the room was completely empty...or so he thought. Without warning, the door to the bathroom opened as a large cloud of steam enveloped the room. He had little time to act, so he jumped to the side of the bed where he wouldn't be seen.

As Maneful stepped out of the bathroom, Zehper only attempted to hide himself further. Her hair was still wet from what appeared to have been a shower and a towel was wrapped around her coat and lower body. She was humming the "Mlp theme song" as she approached the bed.

As she fondled around with her wet mane, Zepher accidentally hit the shelf behind him. Maneful looked up abruptly and stared right into his eyes. What made it worse was that Maneful's lower towel slid off, forcing the stallion to blush. Right before he was about to speak, he was slammed into the wall by magic.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY ROOM?!"

"uhh, i-i d-d-ont-

"HOW DID YOU GET IN HERE?!"

"I-I-I, J-j-ust telepo-

Maneful applied more power to the magical restraint.

"AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, WERE YOU STARING AT ME WHEN THE TOWEL FELL OFF?!

"How could I not?"

"YOU PERVERT...YOU WERE TRYING TO SEED ME NAKED WERN'T YOU?!

"BUT WE NEVER WHERE CLOTHS MANEFUL! WERE ALWAYS NAKED!"

Maneful paused suddenly before releasing her grip.

"Well dang it, now I can't do the brainwashing interrogation."

"That's nice to hear..."

"Oh and you're blushing by the way."

"It's part of the act."

"I wasn't acting; I was just about to get the scissors

Zepher gulped loudly.

"Scissors?" He said in a high pinched voice.

"I'm just joking. So why are you here anyways?" Maneful asked, approaching him slowly.

"Dark Fire needed you for an assignment, didn't say what for though."

"Interesting...well I'll be off then." She said, opening the door. "Oh and sorry about earlier, I'm not used to stallions waiting for me next to a bed."

Zepher only blushed harder when she closed the door. Making sure she was gone, he fainted onto the floor.

* * *

"This shall be the final act of destruction that we put upon on our land. Princess Trixe has given me the request to carry out one final assignment that will truly bring about the end of this Equestrian civil war. Your mission is to capture Twilight Sparkle alive and bring her to justice. The location is none other than the Everfree Forest, a dark and corrupt location that will require your one-hundred percent focus to survive." Dark Fire said, pointing to a map of the forest with a measure. "The entire perimeter of the forest must be completely surrounded, preventing any kind of escape."

"How do you expect simple hoof soldiers to stop the elements of harmony if they were to reach the perimeter?" Castigate asked.

"By overwhelming odds and magic." Dark Fire said with a smile.

On the map, the forest's boundary lit in a dark red color.

"This is the outer boarder of the forest, where the hatred shield/wall will be made by me. This will make them think twice about escaping. Next, I want one-tenth of our entire army to search the entire forest."

"The entire army, as in THE entire army!" Stritin said in surprise.

"Yes…the entire army, all one million of them."

"Do you know how hard it is to move that many ponies and changelings into one condensed spot?" Ammisive asked.

"Plus, we will be completely open for an attack on the capital." Eccentric pointed out.

"Who would be stupid enough to attack us?" Dark Fire laughed.

"Eccentric might have a point." Maneful said, leaning against the wall. "This civil war has left the country, "weak" according to outside sources, and not every kingdom likes Equestria. An attack on our 'Democracy' can be days away from now."

"I appreciate your concern, but you've overlooked one small detail."

Dark Fire walked over to the table and conjured a large book. HHHh

He flipped through the pages until he reached the desired spot before grabbing a folder with his mouth and tossing it onto the table.

"Peace treaties and negotiations." Maneful read aloud.

"Everyone wants peace with us, because we are now established as a free nation with a leader that over through a 'sun goddess'. They fear us Maneful, all of us. Tell me what other nation that is capable of using magic like unicorns." He asked, glaring at Maneful. "Has flying and fighting abilities like our pegasi." He declared, giving Ammisive a smirk. "Possess the strength of thousands like earth ponies." He stated, staring right into Stritin and Eccentric. "A nation that matches our intelligence and superiority." He said proudly, looking at Castigate. "NAME. EVEN. ONE!"

None of the ponies could even think of a nation.

"We are the best there is, and none can stop us! What once started as criminals and outcasts have now turned into an empire to be feared and respected. Those that were in power have paid for their actions and mistakes, now its Twilight's turn. I want her to know how it feels to be shunned from society, to be hunted down by everyone and everything at all times. I WANT HER TO SUFFER, JUST AS WE HAVE SUFFERED!"

All the ponies in the room suddenly stood at attention.

"For the New Conflagration Confederacy…" The all said in sync.

It practically took all night and…night to accomplish but the entire forest was surrounded by guards. Pegasi and changelings patrolled the sky like wasps while the unicorns and earth ponies maintained the barrier Dark Fire made. Just as he said, one-tenth of his army was chosen to search the entire forest, along with the Elements of Disharmony and Dark Fire. However, they were not alone…

* * *

"So it's come to this…"

Enderpearl stood on top of the snowy mountain that Twilight and the others had been staying. The weather was plain and calm, but the atmosphere had changed. The sky had a faint, transparent, glow of red light. Off in the distance, he could see Dark Fire's army slowly disappearing into the fog of war.

"I have been attuned to this forest for as long as I can remember and yet nothing has changed…until now. Dark Fire…what has happened to you. At this very moment you surround us with your darkened empire, hoping to ease the pain in your heart. You will not find it though, for I to have traveled that twisted path with you and nothing fruitful. Yet you still go on…"

"Brother." Endershine said, appearing next to him. "It is as I've feared, the barrier is part of the hatred wave, thus will corrupt anything it touches."

"Then we must tell the others." Enderpearl said calmly, descending down the mountain with his sister.

Upon entering there sanctuary of safety, they were greeted by familiar faces of grim and sadness by the mane six and the commanders.

"Well, what's going on out there?" Lightning Dust asked anxious.

"You want the long description or short description?" Enderpearl asked, without a change in tone.

"It's not like we're going anywhere, just give us the news." Rainbow demanded, impatiently.

Enderpearl nodded his head before using his magic to turn the cave into an observatory. Everypony stared in awe as they saw the Everfree Forest from a bird's eye view.

"As you might have guessed by looking around, we have been tracked down by Dark Fire and his army of darkness."

"You don't say." Silent Wind said sarcasm.

"Silent, this is not the time." Twilight said in a stern voice. "So what's the magical barrier, is it the hatred wave again!" She panicked.

"Yes and no…it's indeed the hatred wave, but it's acting like a shield to keep us in. I would imagine that if one of us where to exit the forest, that its spell would surly take hold. In short, we're stuck here unless we surrender or fight to the very last breath." Enderpearl stated, ending the illusion.

"Well we're screwed then." Bluster Cloud said, plopping down to the ground.

"Your just gonna give up, just like that." Applejack said, acting like a drill sergeant.

"I'm a realist AJ, I can't help it."

"Well with that attitude, they're going to win."

"They've already won, don't you get it." He said, taking Everypony by surprise. "A new, dark age has come over Equestria, one that we tried so hard to stop and prevent, but look at us. We've failed and we are just shells of our former glory. We're just ponies with titles Applejack, we're nothing like the Dis-elements, or even Dark Fire. How are we suppose to fight something like this."

"With faith and hope." Twilight said, lifting the mood. "At the start I had given up hope, with the knowledge that I had probably started this whole situation. But I learned that you can't just give up, no matter how many obstacles get in your way, no matter how many ponies get in your path! We must push forward, for we are what is left of the good of Equestria!"

"Then how do we get past that blasted shield?" Shrill Shot asked.

"Leave that to me." Twilight said with a smile.

* * *

"Find her! Remember, we don't leave until every single crack and cavern has been cleared out!" Dark Fire yelled.

As the last squad left into the forest, Maneful gave a huge sigh.

"Thank you, I thought they would never leave."

"What's the matter Maneful, can't take a large crowd of stallions." Ammisive joked.

"I can tolerate you guys can't I. The problem was that they were asking me a bunch of personal questions. Like if a had coltfriend or what my number was, silly things like that."

"They're just curious Maneful, there's no harm in that." Dark Fire said. "Let's search this way."

As Dark Fire and the others walking deeper into the forest, the conversation continued.

"I wouldn't have a problem with it; it's just that I'm not worth it." Maneful continued.

"What do you mean, not worth it?" Stritin asked.

"My dad would make carpets out of them…and because I'm not…what's the word, beautiful."

Everypony stopped abruptly and stared at her confused.

"Maneful, believe me when I say this." Castigate said, walking up to her. "But you're downright gorgeous!"

"No I'm not, why does everypony say that!" Maneful pouted.

"Because you are." Eccentric blurted out.

"Not you to! Do all of you think I'm beautiful…"

All the Dis-elements and even Dark Fire started to avoid eye contact with her, some even whistling to themselves or pawing at the ground with their hooves. Maneful couldn't help but sigh angrily.

"Fine then, you're ugly." Castigate said bluntly.

"Excuse me!"

"You see, there's my point." Castigate said, adjusting his monocle. "Mares are usually attention freaks, saying an obviously false statement to have everypony compliment them. You however, are not like that though. Your self esteem is lower than most mares your age, but high enough to fight back an insult. Maneful, everypony that I talk to thinks you're cute, so why can't you accept that."

"Exactly Maneful, and what you expect us to think." Ammisive defended. "You're our friend, best friend, we're suppose to lift each other up, not put each other down."

"So long as you don't get your head to high in the clouds." Stritin added.

"Ok guys, enough stalling, we have to keep moving. Eccentric, use your hoof blade if the undergrowth gets to thick."

And so they went on, by passing multiple obstacles as they traveled deeper into the forest. New Conversations were always brought up, some being serious and some being comical. However, it was all about to change.

"So one day I showed Trixie a painting, and you know how much of a jerk I was back then." Castigate said.

Everypony nodded.

"So I told her that within this painting lies your hopes, futures, and dreams. Seconds later she tells me, 'There's nothing on the painting but dust.' So I slowly turn to her and say, 'I know.'

"That's just evil." Stritin smirked.

"Well we are the bad guys right." Castigate shrugged. "What do you expect."

"Hey hold on now." Dark Fire interjected. "We're not all bad now, I mean, look at what we've done for everypony."

"At what cost Dark Fire?" Maneful spoke up. "With knocking out the sun for eternity, causing a never ending winter, starting an Equestrian Civil war, where does it stop?"

"That all for a cause Maneful, I had to make sure we would be secure."

"So you honestly believe that what you do…what we do…is correct?"

"I never said it was…"

"Look at what we have done to Equestria! Everypony is just a bunch of mindless zombies, willing to do whatever we tell them without freewill."

"I, no, that's not-

"And what about the rest of you, are you proud of you've done, what you have accomplished?"

Everypony else stayed silent, almost grim like, but the answer was written all over their face.

"I used to look at Celestia and thinkof what an evil ruler she was to her ponies. Think about how she could have the nerve to punish my father, but now…now I understand why. She did it to protect her fellow ponies just like my dad tried to protect me. Now when I think of Celestia and the others, I can't help but feel sorry for them."

"What about Nightmare and them, they never cared for them!" Dark Fire stated.

"She gave her reasons at the trial didn't she? She attempted to help them did she not. But I guess she wasn't the right pony for the job. You, on the other hoof, united them under one authority and redeemed them of their past. Gave them homes, gave them friends…gave them love, just like you have with us. But that doesn't mean we should forget our vows and promises!"

Maneful gave looks the all the elements before starting.

"Eccentric, after joining Dark Fire to destroy the cult that threatened your home, you swore to serve him loyally, not to give up your thinking. You told me about your creed to your family, how you would protect the innocent and the weak from those that sought out to hurt them. Has that moral vanished?"

Eccentric was almost shivering, covering his eyes with his hat.

"Castigate, you say you have all this wealth but yet you don't do anything with it. You say you were sorry that your sister went through the pain that she endured, but there are others like her that you chose not to help. So suddenly, when it's not your family, you can't lend out a bit or two."

Castigate sat there in complete shock, knowing every bit of it was true.

"Stritin, you told me that you were once a proud officer in the Poniet Union, but you escaped when you learned of the harsh and cruel punishments they would do to others. Has that escaped your mind as you saw this war unfold before your eyes?"

He remained silent.

"Lastly, Ammisive, the proud Pegasus. You hated Rainbow so much that you almost destroyed TWO cities just to get revenge. Well you did it, you ran her out of Equestria and left her with nothing, but you still bear a look of sorrow and regret. Tell me, is revenge truly as sweet as they say."

Ammisive looked at her dead in the eyes before turning away, shutting his eyes tightly. When it seemed like she was finished, she made one last bold move.

"Dark Fire, you should know our pain better than anypony else. You took over all of Equestria just to get revenge of Celestia, but you dragged everypony down with her when you could have forgiven her. You did ALL of this because of one misunderstanding."

"Twilight wasn't misunderstood when she told me off." Dark Fire said, sorrowfully.

"Look into your heart of the real you, not this sham you put upon yourself. Look deep in my eyes and truly tell me that Twilight hates you."

Dark Fire looked at her, but the words never came, only silence.

"I cant…"

"Then why do you continue this."

"BECAUSE THERE IS NO OTHER WAY!" Dark Fire screamed, taking everypony by surprise. "Trust me when I say this, because history can repeat itself. If I let Celestia free…you all will endure my punishment."

"Then we'll go though it together."

"NO, I WONT LET YOU! I WONT LET MY FRIENDS AND LOVED ONES SUFFER LIKE ME!"

"We can accomplish anything together, Dark Fire!"

"NOT IF WERE DEAD!"

Thunder crashed in the distance, signifying an approaching storm.

"The punishment for my crimes is death…and the same applies to all of you, and the new rulers. It even applies to…my beloved Trixie. So you see, there's no turning back now, we can only look forward…and hope for the best."

**Kind of an abrupt ending because i didn't expect this chapter to be this long. Anyways, the next chapter continues from where this leaves off.**


	26. Chapter 16 C

**(Edit): I will be back the 27th of July, but as i said before, the chapters are getting so looooooooong...like come on 15,000 words, uhhh. I will do what i can, but with my senor year starting up soon, don't be surprised if i have to take a week of to finish a chapter. Oh and the reason why i just don't make a new chapter if its so long is because the fic goes in eight chapter intervals. 1-8 was Night Shadow. 8-16 was Dark Fire's rule, etc and at the end of each interval is something HUGE. Now for letters...uhhh...that can go on forever...anyways, the 27th. **

**PLEASE READ THIS:**** I'm sorry that it has to come to this, but i will not be posting new chapters for possible a long time, and here's why. My mom has been battling civics cancer since the start of November and it was going well until a week ago. The doctors did what they could to cure her, but it was all in vain. The cancer grew to be aggressive and spread through out her entire body, only giving her three weeks to live. This was told to me yesterday so my entire family has come to my state to be with her for her final moments until today. Today, at around ten P.M central time, my mom passed away before my eyes...yet I refused to cry. I haven't been able to speak or concentrate for today and i doubt i will in a long time. I hope that all of you understand. **

**My contact information on Xbox life is: comando 954. Skype contact: triggs954. Twitter is: Ivan M Kolzov commando954. Face Book is: Bill Triggs (but i don't do anything on there/ it the one with me Cos playing as Android 17.) Cell phone is: (615) 410-8148. Please do not spam me, but i can answer questions about myself or about the fanfic, but i wont give out spoilers. Lastly, no question will weird me out, trust me, I've seen it all. Thank you for enjoying me and my friends fanfic...may God help us all. ****  
**

**(Authors note: this chapter continues right where 16 B left off.)**

Chapter 16 C: All Hope Lost

"Now…if there are any more questions, please let them be known." Dark Fire spoke, overcome with depression.

Silence…

"I'm…sorry…" Maneful finally said.

All the Elements continued on with Dark Fire, leaving Maneful behind.

"Sorry that you actually believe what you're saying…"

* * *

"THERE COMING!" Pinkie shouted, bouncing rapidly down into the cavern.

"Everypony in position!" Endershine ordered.

Within seconds, they had descended deeper into the darkness of the cave and hid behind anything they could find.

"So this is how it ends…" Twilight whispered.

"If we are not true to our cause, then it will be." Endershine whispered.

"Silence!" Enderpearl almost shouted. "And be still…"

Looking out of the darkness of the cave, they could point out multiple silhouettes surrounding the entrance.

"Check here…the narrator was just making a big deal about this." Dark Fire ordered.

"Whatever my lord, if that's what the voice is telling you." Ammisive said. 'I swear, he can be so weird at times.' He thought.

"Hey, I'm not weird!" Dark Fire said.

"What the…" Ammisive said, in disbelief before shaking his head. "Castigate, come here."

Surprisingly, he came without a side remark.

"Ammisive, I hate the dark, you know that..." Castigate said, almost frightened.

"Awww, is the proud unicorn scared."

"NO...I'm not." Castigate said, starting to panic. "It's just that, they might try to ambush me with their unclean hooves."

"That's a stupid excuse."

"No it's not...you're stupid."

"OH, don't get me started you..."

As the argument continued, the main six continued to wait patiently for them to pass.

"That's weird, the white stallion acts just like you Rarity." Rainbow teased. "Rarity..."

"Oh my gosh...he's so...handsome." Rarity said, starting to daydream.

Rainbow faced hoofed so hard, it left a red imprint on her face for weeks

"What was that?" Castigate said, frightened.

"You're just making things up now!" Ammisive yelled.

"Shut up, just shut up, I'll go already!"

"Good, but it's not needed, I can take care of this myself." Ammsive said proudly.

Castigates face turned completely red from anger.

"OH NOW YOU CAN HANDLE IT! WELL TO BAD, IM GOING MYSELF!"

Castigate quickly darted into the entrance of the cave, only for him to be abruptly stopped and shocked by a force field.

You know your friends that help you with things, and then there's your best friends that make it worse...Ammisive was that friend.

"HA YOU IDIOT, YOU FELL FOR IT!"

"Be quiet, your making my head spin!" Dark Fire yelled. "Maneful, what type of magic is that."

Maneful approached the field that continued to glow blue before it faded.

"It's ancient magic used by alicorns...royal by that matter. It looks like Luna herself put this up, which means your search, is over."

"So we've found them!" Dark Fire said happily.

"No I mean your search is literally over, nothing can get through this kind of field. Let me try to study this futhAAHHh-

Maneful attempted to put her hooves on the field, but only fell through.

"Well that's not supposed to happen..."

"Well use it to our advantage. Stritin and Eccentric, try to search for another entrance while Maneful explores the cave."

"What, I've never agreed to-

"The faster this is done, the faster I can try to fix the damage I have done." Dark Fire said.

Maneful sighed heavily before she stood up and descended further into the cavern. Meanwhile, Twilight and the others were almost in panic.

"I though those of evil intent couldn't enter this sacred place." Twilight whispered to Enderpearl.

He didn't respond.

It was at that moment Maneful casted a light spell to see. To her horror, she looked around to see that she was surrounded by faces of fear and aggression. Maneful shook in her place and shut her eyes.

"They're...not here Dark Fire..."

"What do you mean not here?!"

"Well...there appears to be another barrier...one I can't get through."

Maneful turned around to leave and the light faded, but not before seeing all the surprised looks from the crowd of ponies.

"So after all that...no Twilight?!" Dark Fire said in disbelieve.

"Let's just keep moving." Maneful said, walking out into the night.

"Hold on now." Dark Fire said, evilly. "There's obviously something hidden within this cave...and I intend to find it."

"Dark Fire I already told you, there's nothing here!"

He ignored her as he approached the barrier

"YOU HAVE TO BE OF ROYAL BLOOD TO BREAK THE SPELL DARK FIRE!"

"I...am...ROYAL!"

Dark Fire abruptly slammed both his hooves into the barrier, causing it to ripple. It was enough force to send vibrations throughout the mountain, causing the ground to shake.

"I HAVE SURPASSED THE PRINCESSES; I HAVE BECOME PRINCE OF THIS WHOLE NATION!"

The shield refused to give way, but soon cracks started to form on the shield, causing the ponies inside and even dis-elements to stare in fright. Twilight, in panic, looked to Enderpearl in fright. Surprisingly, even he was showing signs of amazement at what this crazy pony was capable of.

"THEN BY ALL MEANS...I COMMAND THIS SHIELD TO FALL!

More cracks formed on the wall of magic until finally, the barrier shattered with a large echo.

"Now we shall see how empty this cave really is…"

Without warning, a large burst of power sent Dark Fire and the other flying out of the entrance. Out of the smoke came the elements of harmony and the two alicorns.

"Enderpearl and Endershine...why am I not surprised." Dark Fire chuckled. "So the illegitimate son and daughter of Luna is supposed to stop me?"

"We won't stop you." Endershine said boldly, looking towards Twilight. "But she will."

"Her?! HAHAHAHHAHAHAH! She couldn't stop me the first time. What is she going to do now, forgive me?

"If that is what it takes!" Twilight shouted.

"What are you so anxious about getting me back anyways? You threw me onto the streets remember."

"Yes...but I'm sorry, why won't you accept that!"

"BECAUSE YOU'VE ALWAYS BEEN SORRY!" Dark Fire yelled, causing an eco. "You were sorry when I was around you, sorry when I embarrassed you, sorry that I loved love, sorry...because I WON AND YOU LOST!"

"Night Shadow, I know you're in there somewhere, please listen to me!" Twilight said, shedding tears

Enough had been enough for the two alicorns as they took position in front of Twilight.

"We used to be friends Night Shadow...now you're completely lost in darkness." Enderpearl said, dropping his voice into a more series tone

"Yet you are the ones hiding in caves...tell me, so you even know where your elements are Twilight."

"What do you mean...the elements...I thought I-

"Brought them, HAHAHAHAHA! You left them at your house, Discord recovered them months ago. They're now trophies on display!"

A wave of fear fell onto Twilight and the rest of the main six; however, the two alicorns still remained strong

"We're not going to give up just because of that!" Endershine yelled.

"I never planned on it..."

Dark Fire smirked as the Elements of Disharmony stepped forward.

"Meet my version of the elements of harmony."

They all took fighting potations except Maneful, who was hesitant at first but came through.

"Bring me Twilight..." Dark Fire Smirked.

"FINE, YOU WANT ME, THEN COME GET ME!" Twilight shouted, shooting snow into the air and using blinding magic.

As they were all blinded, Twilight made duplicate clones of herself and turned all her friends into look a likes of her.

"BREAK FOR IT!" Twilight yelled.

As Dark Fire recovered, he saw several Twilights running off into different directions!"

"Chase her down!"

The Elements of Disharmony broke up to chase the runaway Twilights.

Dark Fire then morphed into Night Shadow and whistled loudly into the sky, disturbing several birds in the trees. It wasn't long before a large manticore lunged out from the bushes and approached him

"Remember me my pet...and your promise."

The beast looked confused before nodding and nuzzling him.

"Good, use your dark magic to find the real Twilight...and don't harm her. However, if she's accompanied by the alicons, do not confront her. They are to powerful for you, simply send me a signal and I will come. Then you can hunt the others down, but the same rules apply."

It gave a distrusting look before it set out, kicking up dirt as it disappeared into the forest.

"You think just after all that, we're just going to let you leave?" A voice said, coming from the cave

Dark Fire turned to see five different stallions emerge from the cave, all equipped with royal armor.

"Ah, you must be the infamous five that I have heard so much about. Tell me, how's it feel to lose this bad.

"About as bad as you must feel inside your heart!" Shrill Shot barked.

"Really now, what makes you say that." Dark Fire said, attempting to hold back surprise.

"Your emotions." Vivum said

"Your actions" Animum added.

"And your stance…it's all clearly obvious." Bluster Cloud concluded.

"Tell us why…Twilight and the others have talked about who you once where, how you cared so much for them. Now, you're just a broken mirror of your former self who everyone hates." Silent Wind said without sorrow.

"They don't hate me…I'm loved by everypony…you've seen it yourselves right." Dark Fire said, panicking.

Even if Dark Fire couldn't see it, the commanders did. What they saw was almost frightening, Dark Fire was losing his sanity right before their eyes.

"I have friends…ponies…that love me!" Dark Fire said, laughing in a frightening way.

"YOU HAVE ENSLAVED EVERYPONY TO DO YOUR BIDDING WITHOUT QUESTION! HOW IS THAT LOVE!?" Shrill Shot yelled as his anger got the best of him.

"No…you're wrong…I MADE THEM ACCEPT ME!"

"With corruption and hatred?!" Bluster Cloud snarled.

"SOOO WHAT!" Dark fire screamed.

Dark Fire's mane and fur was in a complete mess, almost acting like a thorn bush as his sanity decreased. Unfortunately, it was being replaced by blind rage.

"I HAVE MADE EQUESTRIA INTO AN UNSTOPABLE EMPIRE, TO BE FEARED BY EVERYONE AND EVERYTHING! I HAVE MADE ARMIES AS VAST AS THE SEA ITSELF, ADVANCED OUR COUNTRIES WEALTH AND TECHNOLOGY FAR BEYOND OUR WILDEST DREAMS! AND YET I, THE PRINCE OF EQUESTRIA AND DARKNESS IS LOOKED UPON AS AN EVIL TYRANT! YOU AND YOUR FRIENDS ARE FOOLS IF YOU THINK YOU COULD POSSIBLY RESIST MY POWER! WELL NO MORE WILL YOU FIGHT, FOR I WILL END YOUR PATHETIC SUFFERING WITH MY OWN HOOVES!"

"Dark Fire, you must listen to reason. What you have done is destroying the entire planet with hatred and destruction! If you do not stop this now, everyone and everything will parish in ice and hatred!" Bluster Cloud said, attempting to reason.

"Nooo…I am done listening to you." Dark Fire whispered in a demonic tone. "I have done this because your princess has turned me into this…thus I shall return the favor through blood and violence."

"You don't have to do this Dark Fire!"Animum pleaded.

"There is still a way to righteousness and forgiveness!" Vivum begged.

"There isn't…not anymore…NOT ANYMORE!" Dark Fire screamed

The five commanders took fighting positions, ready to fight for what they think will be their last time.

"Celestia would never forgive, hahaha, ahahahahaha, AHAHAHAHAHA! She would much rather see me suffer." Dark Fire said, tears forming in his eyes. "AND THAT'S WHAT I'M GOING TO LET HER DO!" He shouted insanely.

"Then we shall stop you…" Shrill Shot boldly claimed.

There was a moment of silence before Dark Fire's hair was engulfed in red light.

"Forgive me…" The broken prince whispered.

* * *

"Well it looks like the spell wore off." Rainbow said, continuing to run through the thick forest. "So good thing is that I can fly now and the bad thing is that I don't know where anypony is at." She said, taking flight.

Almost like magic, a large lightning bolt struck the tree nearby, causing her wings to spas out and make her fall on her face…very painfully I might add.

"Scratch that…now my face hurts and I still don't know where anypony is at."

"So Rainbow, you think you could get away from me!"

"You know what, just trash the entire list."

Rainbow lunged forward, avoiding several blasts of lightning colliding behind her. When she stood up, she finally made eye contact with the pursuer.

"Ammisive, when will you learn that I'm the fastest in Equestria?"

He didn't' respond as he casually floated down to the ground only several feet away from Rainbow.

"I never said you weren't, but I never said you were. But the fact remains; I'm still the fastest in the world."

"Nice jokes…but we all know who really is faster." Rainbow smirked.

"Please, the biggest accomplishment you have ever done is the sonic rainboom, but to me that's still too slow."

"Really now, how comes I've never seen you try something like that."

"Hahahahaha! Tell me Rainbow Trash…have I ever told you why my name is Lightning Flash."

In the blink of an eye, Ammisive punched Rainbow in the face, dead center. Making her crash right into the dirt like a comet and creating a rock angel. It was then she heard a large boom of sound that made her ears ring.

"Your hear Rainbow, that is sound of me breaking the sound barrier. Something you can't do without going full speed, yet I have done it within milliseconds. Admit it Rainbow, I will always be stronger then you!"

Rainbow lunged out of the ground to surprise attack Ammisive, but he jumped over her and grabbed her. He then front flipped and tossed Rainbow like an axe into a tree. Rainbow acted quickly and recovered herself, landing on the tree sideways. This was short lived when Ammisive elbowed her right through the tree and then some. She stood up, still dazed by the attack and with a massive head ache. What she needed was time to think, but time was only a dream for her.

She was knocked out of her trance as her eye caught a flash of yellow light. She could have sworn that all the fur on her back stood up as she leaned back and evaded the lightning bolt flying mere inches away from her face. It caused a fairly large scorch mark on the boulder behind her and the ground to vaporize and wither.

"Ha, just like in the movie Maretrix!" Rainbow said to herself.

"Dodge this you fool!"

Ammisive conjured a large ice spear and chucked it at her like a javelin. A second later, he discharged a bolt of lightning into the spear, making it rupture into a deadly barrage of electrically charged ice picks. Rainbow panicked and hit ground abruptly, biting her tongue in the process but avoiding the debris.

"That look suits you Rainbow, ON THE GROUND WERE YOU BELONG!"

Ammisive took no time at all to summon two dark blue balls into his hooves and clap them together, sending out a burst of wind and thunder that blasted Rainbow into the boulder. She fell to the floor before she struggled to get up, only to see that the weather pegasus was gone. Looking around in a panic, she quickly tried to find the Pegasus, only for her to be grabbed from behind by her target.

"What's the matter Rainbow, too fast for you?" Ammisive mocked, crushing her with his strength and laughing evilly.

'How in the world did he get so fast and powerful in only one month?' Rainbow thought to herself. 'Back in Vanhoover, I could always be one step ahead, now I can even keep up with him.'

"Just think about it Rainbow. It's just you, me, and this graveyard…where all your dreams will come to an end, and I will be laughing. LAUGHING OVER YOUR GRAVE!"

"LET GO OF MEEE!" Rainbow screamed.

"No…not this time, this time no one will save, THIS TIME YOU WILL BE DESTROYED!"

Lightning flowed through Ammisive's wings and carried over to the poor pegasus. All Rainbow could do was cry in pain, hoping somepony or something would save her, but it was all in vain…

* * *

"That sounds like Dashie, and she's in trouble!" Pinkie yelled, darting to her in a pink blur.

I would have taken only seconds for her to reach Rainbow with her speed; unfortunately, there was a change of plans. Pinkie had no time to reach as a large hoof nailed her across the muzzle. Even if her head was punched back, her body continued to accelerate, making a pin-ball effect on several trees. See could have sworn the high score meter went off with a bang before she hit the floor like a cannon ball.

"Owww…the narrator's such a Meany face."

"Hallo, pinks…nice night we're having." A large dark blue said, leaning on a tree.

"You again! I thought you were-

"Defeated, HA, you can't get rid of me that easily."

"Oh really Stritin, or should I say…" Pinkie suddenly put on a detectives hat and stuck a pipe in her mouth. "Black Blade!"

"Yes, it's me and…wait…how do you know my name?" Stritin asked confused.

"Simple my dear, I cleverly read the fanfic to discover your name. I also discovered when your birthday is!" Pinkie shouted, excited.

"That's imposib…wait, THE WHAT?!"

"The Fanfic silly, the one everyone is reading right now."

"Don't be ridiculous, this is real life here and I plan to show you just how real this!" Stritin yelled. 'This is getting weird, first Dark Fire talks about this magical story, and now her to. Maybe it is true…no, what am I thinking, both of those ponies are nuts.'

"By real life, do you mean this?" Pinkie said, somehow having a box of "Life" cereal on her head.

"This game ends now Pinkie! Get ready to fight!"

"Aww, but I don't like fighting, fighting is so rough, unless it's a pillow fight, then I could fight in those all-

Stritin lunged forward to shut the pink mare up for good, only problem was that he slightly missed and smashed his hoof straight through a boulder.

"And then they would say, 'Pinkie, you can't bring a bed to a pillow fight, that's cheating and-

Stritin tried again, this time focusing on the mouth, but the same result occurred. Only difference was that he knocked over an oak tree.

"And as the pillow fight went on I would accidentally pick up Rarity and she would say, 'I'm not a pillow, put me down!' And I would say sorry and-

'This is going to end right now.' Stritin though as the pink mare continued to talk.

Stritin's coat burst into a color of dark blue aura as he darted right to Pinkie while she was still talking. He threw out punches and kicks so fast that it made the sound wave ripple. He tried everything, to basic attacks, to complicated maneuvers to attempt to even hit her once, but every time, she would just duck, dodge, or sway. But the most annoying part was that she was STILL talking.

"And then she said she liked muffins better, but I said cupcakes were better, but she said they weren't, but I said-

"DO YOU THINK THIS IS A JOKE?" Stritin yelled in anger.

"A joke? No, you're not that funny, but you could be. Anypony can be funny if they put their heart to it and-

Stritin had enough of it and out of rage, uprooted a small tree with his mouth and chucked it at Pinkie. Pinkie, out of reflex, judo chopped the tree in half, leaving Stritin even more frustrated.

"That's it; I'm going to beat you so badly that scientist won't be able to tell you or A.B.C chewing gum apart!"

"Oh I love chewing gum!"

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!" Stritin shouted, losing all control of his restraint and trying to punch Pinkie again.

"You know what I forgot, I forgot we were fighting, silly me." Pinkie said, almost happily.

With that, Pinkie stopped one of Stritin's punches effortlessly and jabbed him straight in the stomach. Stritin could have sworn that his eyes popped out of his eye sockets when the punch landed. It was one of the most painful things he had ever felt.

"Ha I got you." Pinkie said, bouncing back and forth with her hooves raised.

"Did a train just hit me?" Stritin garbled before collapsing on the ground.

"Hey, I thought we were fighting, not taking a nap."

"Shut…up." Stritin whispered, still gripping his stomach.

He closed his eyes, attempting to ignore out the pain. He was meet with a surprise though, as he felt a thud next to him.

"You know Stritin, you don't seem that evil like some of the others." She said, lying next to him. "You seem more…afraid."

"Now you're taunting me."

"That's what my Pinkie Scenes is telling me, you're afraid.

"I'M THE ELEMENT OF FEAR, I BRING TERROR APON THE LAND AND YOU ARE NO EXCEPTION!" Stritin screamed, launching himself away from Pinkie. "I should have done this a long time ago.

His aura exploded in dark blue color yet again, expanding three times in size as he stood on his hind legs and slammed his hooves together.

"I DON'T CARE HOW CUTE YOU MIGHT BE, HOW STUPID YOU ACT OUT TO BE, BUT NOPONY AND I MEAN NOPONY MAKES FUN OF ME!"

A black, dark blue void opened up behind the screaming stallion as energy started to form into his hooves.

"TERROR CANNON…FIRE!"

* * *

"Why a forest, of all the places we had to run into, now my coat is all wet and out of place." Rarity bickered to herself, attempting to maneuver into a bush. "The forest is no place for a civil lady at all, just look at this catastrophe. The vines and trees are all out of place."

She looked to her left, seeing nothing but thick underbrush blocking her way. To her right were thorn bushes of gigantic size that could be compared to a house.

"I don't see why this always happens to me, I mean, everypony else can run around here and have perfect hair but I can't!"

She walked near pond of water and looked at her reflection.

"UHH, being in that cave has really done a number on me. My hair is in a complete mess and I can't remember the last time I got a manicure for my hooves."

"You know, if it was any other pony, I would have just followed the trail, but you. Your nagging and whining can be heard a mile away."

Rarity turned around to see none other than Castigate, who by the looks of it, casted a muffle spell around his ears.

"You see, perfect hair and clothes, why can't I not-

"Quiet, I've heard enough of your whining and bickering over your stupid hair!" Castigate yelled, holding his ears with his hooves.

"Whining, you think THAT'S whining, that is clearly complaining."

"No it's not, and so what if it is, there no difference! Your hair is always going to be horrible and you can't do anything about it!"

"You think my hair is horrible!" Rarity screamed.

"It surpassed that, it's the type of hair ponies will point at and laugh wondering what went wrong."

"How dare you make fun of a ladies hair!"

"I do what I want woman and-

"Woman! You will address me as such mister and nothing less."

"Silence you peasant! I've heard-

"A PEASANT…YOU CALLED ME A PEASANT!"

"Stop whining!" Castigate practically begged.

"Oh you want to see whining, THIS IS WHIN-

Castigate quickly used his magic and put magical tape across her mouth as his ear muffs shattered into pieces.

"I never thought somepony could out talk me like that." Castigate panted. "That mouth of yours is practically a weapon uhhh…raggedy?"

Rarity attempted to scream at him more, but it was only muffled by the magical tape.

"Anyways, my lord has ordered us to capture you if possible, but I have nothing against you at the moment. So I see no point besides getting an easy buck…or shutting you up for once. So tell me why I shouldn't do that."

She attempted to talk again, same result.

"Well, since you're going to be silent for once, I guess I'll just turn you in."

Rarity abruptly ripped off the magic from her mouth with her hoof, leaving a large red mark.

"My name is Rarity, not raggedy for starters."

"Your coat looks like a rag, why not call you raggedy, and what element are suppose to be anyways! The element of annoyance!"

"I, my dear sir, am the element of Generosity." Rarity said, prideful.

"The element of generosity, HA…hahahahhahaha! More like the element of horrosity you fat balloted marshmallow!"

"What…did you just call me?" Rarity whispered, as her eyes dilated.

"You heard me you pig…or are your ears to filled with fat to her me you disgusting work horse."

Rarity's eyes were now twitching in anger.

"You have just passed Blue Blood in arrogance and rudeness."

"Oh, I forgot about him, you tried to marry him just to become royalty! How low can you go you lard filled, rat infested, stuck up, hoof sucking, worthless, little piece of trash!"

"I'LL DESTROY YOU, YOU DIMWITTED, RICH JERK!" Rarity screamed, as if her hair had been turned green.

"Like shooting fish in a barrel…"

Castigate's horn erupted in a bright green color as he shot a small beam into Rarity. As a result, Rarity's anger suddenly vanished as she snapped into attention. Her eye color started to fade away and turn bright green as if she was zombified.

"How disappointing, I though you would have resisted at least some of my mind control…oh well. A job is a job and a target is a target." He said, approaching Rarity with a dark smile and putting his hoof on her cheek. "A rather beautiful one at that…"

"GET YER HOOVES OFF MY FRIEND!"

Castigate spun around just in time to see a rope wrap around him and yank him back from Rarity.

"Applejack!? I should have known you wou-

Applejack quickly put her hoof on his mouth and hogtied him at such a speed, it would make Rainbow jealous.

"There, that should hold ya." Applejack said, admiring her work. "Rarity, are you alright?"

Rarity stood there like a brick wall, motionless and lifeless.

"Stupid farm pony, what can you do against my magic?! I have her under my control and nothing can break it!" Castigate declared.

"Oh yeah…well what if the rope is enchanted to absorb magic." Applejack smirked.

"Hahahah…what…

Castigate struggled to teleport, fade through the rope, or even use magic in general. Everything he did wasn't working.

"What have you done to me, you slave!"

"Rarity, I know your still in there somewhere, please snap out of it!"

"It would seem that you came to late Applejack…but just in time for the slaughter." A fairly dark voice said behind her.

"Not now…"

Applejack turned to see six spike bombs land in front of her. He quickly reacted by tackling Rarity and hitting the dirt before the exploded.

"Eccentric, how nice of you to join us. Now if you would so kindly, let me out of this." Castigate pleaded.

"Yeah, after I'm done with Applejack here…I want this to be a fair fight."

"Fair fight!? Are you kidding me right now!"

"Applejack, the last time we fought you won by a fluke. This time there will be no excuse…

"If this is going to be fair, then take off all yer gadgets and armor then." Applejack said, backing up into a tree.

"Fine then."

Eccentric untied his newly made hoof cannon and removed his hood blade. He then took off his waist coat and paused at his leather jacket.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Applejack said, almost frightened.

"Nothing…it's just that I'm really uncomfortable without my clothes…I feel so…naked." He whispered.

If Castigate could face hoof, he would have impaled his hoof right through his face.

"Stop being a sissy and just fight her already!" He yelled in anger.

"OK, OK, I'll take off the jacket…"

Everypony stared at him awkwardly as he fumbled around with it.

"Anytime now!" Castigate said irritated.

"Oh…you mean now? As in now, now?"

"YES!" Applejack and Castigate yelled.

A small whimper was heard as he took off the jacket and placed it softly on the ground. Eccentric now stood clothe-less before them, aside his black cowboy hat, it was something truly rare to see. His cutie mark was revealed for the first time to be a bow with five arrows.

'Has he always been that tall?' Applejack thought. 'He's almost as big as Sombra."

"I'm keeping my hat on Applejack; it's just too special for me to lose." Eccentric said, turning to her. "Now I hope you're ready…there will be no excuse this."

Eccentric charged forward as Applejack did the same, meeting in the middle with a great crash. While the two struggled to overpower the other, Eccentric took charge and started to push Applejack back. In response, she slammed her strong hind legs into the dirt, hoping to regain control. Even if it did slow him down, it was not enough as Applejack soon had her back pinned to a large tree. Eccentric then took the liberty to punch her straight in the gut, making the tree behind her crack from force.

Applejack was a strong pony due to her job at the farm and was more than capable of taking a hit, but it didn't make her invincible nor make the punch pleasant. It made her flinch in pain, but not enough to make a difference in battle. Applejack grabbed Eccentric's hoof and strongly bucked him in the chest. Eccentric paused what he was doing just to look up at Applejack in disappointment.

"What was that suppose to do?" He asked, in a none evil tone, but more of an 'are you bucken kidding me' tone before pushing her further into the tree and tossing her twenty feet to the right.

Applejack regained her footing just in time before Eccentric lunged at her with his right hoof cocked back. She turned her back to him as if she was about to run, planted her for-legs on the ground, and bucked Eccentric right in the chest just before he landed on the ground. Eccentric flew back ten feet and rolled on the ground just before he slid into a tree.

"That's more like it Applejack! Give me a challenge, all of Equestria is depending on you!" Eccentric said, as if enjoying the fight.

'What's with this guy?' Applejack thought. 'He takes two bucks to the chest and then just shrugs it off. It would seem brute strength alone won't win this.'

She was right, strength alone does not win every battle, but what it meant was that Applejack was going to have to use her head and think fast. Something she wasn't good at in short amounts of time.

"Finnish her off already!" Castigate yelled.

"Quiet you whelp; I'm trying to make this enjoyable!" Eccentric shouted back.

"Focus you num nut!"

Applejack took the chance to run up and punch the distracted hunter in the jaw. Without delay, she tripped him by swinging her body under his hooves and quickly bucked him into the air. As he came down, she tackled him straight into the ground. Before she could do anything else, Eccentric grabbed her by her mane and threw her off.

"You fool, she almost got you." Castigate said, continuing to be annoying.

"Will you just shut up!" Eccentric screamed before Applejack decked him once again.

* * *

"Scream all you want Rainbow, no one can here you suffer!" Ammisisve mocked, continuing to electrocute Rainbow.

Even if Ammisive was right, there was no way Rainbow would give up so easily, but the pain was getting to Rainbow as thousands of volts ran through her body.

I can't give up…I will not let you win…I WON'T LET YOU GET AWAY WITH THIS!" Rainbow screamed.

Ammisive laughed maniacally before he finally let go of Rainbow, letting her fall like a rock.

"You were always the stubborn one Rainbow…never accepting the facts lying before you." He said, planting a hoof on her head and smothering her face into the dirt. "Just give up and accept the fact that you lost!"

"I'll never…give up." Rainbow said faintly.

"YOU STUPID FOOL!" Ammisive shouted, applying more pressure. "IF YOU WON'T SURRENDER TO ME OR LIFE THEN YOU'LL SURRENDER TO DARKNESS."

Ammisive lifted his right for-leg off of Rainbow and lifted it into the air. As if acting like a conductor, his hoof caught a large bolt of lightning, making his fur glow brightly. He then flipped Rainbow onto her back and smirked.

"I want you to look at me…to gaze upon the very pony that destroyed your home, the pony that destroyed your life just as you have with mine! To see the very pony that you used to call your friend…"

To Rainbow's shock, she could see that Ammisive was holding back tears as he pointed his hoof to her.

"Goodbye Rainbow Dash…you were the only pony…that ever showed me love in this world…" Ammisive whispered, as tears flowed down his face. "I love you…"

Just before Rainbow thought she had seen the end of her life, a purple blur zoomed in and kicked Ammisive away from Rainbow and into the dark forest. Seconds later, a lightning bolt erupted from the forest where Ammisive had landed.

"You have to get out of here now!" The mare shouted.

"WAIT, you're that mare from-

"GO, I'm doing you a favor!" The mare shouted, summoning magic to her hooves.

"But I-

"AMMISIVE, SHE'S GETTING AWAY!" The mare shouted into the forest.

Rainbow took this opportunity and ran into the forest away from the scene. The mare then let out a loud scream before she started to blast the general area where Rainbow had vanished. Seconds later, Ammisive came running out of the forest, enraged.

"MANEFUL, WHERE DID SHE GO! WHERE DID THAT LITTLE-

"Calm down Ammisive, she ran off in that direction along with Lighting Dust."

"So she's the dead pony that hit me! I'll find her and then…wait…there's no way she could be strong enough to do that…unless…"

Ammisive gave a grave look Maneful.

"You did it, didn't you..." Ammisive said, in a demonic tone.

"Are you kidding me! Rainbow is getting away and you're pointing hooves! No wonder why she gets away every time."

"I'LL MAKE YOU PAY FOR THIS!"

Ammisive charged at Maneful, but was surprised that he was suddenly enveloped in bright purple magic and slammed into the dirt. Maneful suddenly jumped onto Ammisive and restrained him with her hooves.

"You see what your anger is doing! It's turning you against your friends and your mission! Blind rage won't solve your problems, but action will! SO STOP WAISTNG YOUR TIME AND GET RAINBOW DASH!"

Ammisive struggled under Maneful's hold, but soon, his raged ceased as he let out a sigh.

"Your right Maneful, I let my anger get the best of me…"

"Then go show that Rainbow pony who truly is the fastest in Equestria!"

Ammisive stood up and smirked at Maneful before he darted into the forest, leaving Maneful behind.

"That…was to close."

"I…I knew you weren't like the other's."

Maneful turned around quickly to see a timid yellow pony standing near a bush.

"You're Fluttershy aren't you?" Maneful asked, calmly.

She slowly nodded, hiding behind her mane, but when Maneful stepped forward, Fluttershy jumped back into the bush.

"Don't worry Fluttershy; I'm not going to hurt you."

"W-why are you helping us?" She said, almost silently.

"I don't know why, but there's this pain in my heart because of what I've done, and I'm going to make a difference."

"I have seen her come this way, hurry!" The voice of a guard said, in the distance.

"Come with me Fluttershy, I'll get you out of here."

* * *

The as the smoke from Stritin's blast cleared, he couldn't help but smirk.

"NOW DO YOU REALIZE WHY I AM THE ELEMENT OF FEAR! YOU HAD LOST FROM THE VERY BEGINNING!"

Pinkie stood awkwardly in front of Stritin before bursting out in laughter.

"What, no…NO! THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!" Stritin yelled, before he felt tapping on his shoulders.

"You know, the last time I checked, nothing was impossible." Lightning Dust said, before punching Stritin into a boulder.

As Pinkie tried to stand up, she caught a cyan pony staring at her with a smile.

"Hey, what have I missed?" Rainbow said to her.

"Rainbow Dash!" Pinkie yelled, before hugging her.

"This is no time to get comfortable you guys, we have a situation here." Lightning said, pointing to Stritin.

"Oh yeah, I got your bother chancing me in a full blown rage."

"Then let's scram and meet up with the others before it's too late."

As the trio vanished into the woods, Ammisive came darting in, only a few seconds late. He glanced to his left to see Stritin attempting to stand up.

"Stritin, what happened here."

"Your sister, that's what happened."

"Darn her! She could never understand our cause! Where did she go?"

"She went that way, quick, follow me. We'll have these mares behind bars by tonight."

* * *

"Swing left…right…right again! Now kick her while she's down!" Castigate cheered.

"Quite, let the real stallion do his job!" Eccentric said, continuing to exchange punches with Applejack.

"Real stallion? Let me out of this rope and I'll take you both on at once!"

"I highly doubt you would do anything but talk if you were out."

"UNTIE ME AND I'LL SHOW YOU JUST HOW MUCH OF A STALLION I TRULY AM!"

"FINE THEN, I WILL!"

Eccentric turned and bucked Applejack into a large bush before he walked angrily to Castigate. He then heard a loud whistle before a large rock hit him in the back of the head.

"WHO'S THE DEAD PONY THAT…"

He stared in shock and horror to see that Rarity was holding his very own hoof cannon and pointing it right at him.

"That would be me darling." She said, cocking the cannon.

"OK now…there no need to be violent…" Eccentric said, as sweet poured down his muzzle.

"A lady is never violent…but then again, there are always exceptions." She said, smirking.

Applejack regained consciousness to see one of her best friends about to blast the stallion she was just fighting.

"Rarity! What do ya think yer doing!" Applejack yelled.

"I'm about to see how dark this ponies fur can get when this toy is at full power." She said, turning the knob.

"Rarity, you don't know what you're doing! Please put that thing down!" Eccentric panicked.

"And then what will you do, capture us? No, I think I'm fine on this side of the barrel, dear."

"We're not after you; we're after that Twilight girl!"

"You think I'm just going to let a group of ruffians hurt one of my best friends? I don't think you know what true friendship is."

"Then show me what true friendship is!"

"Eccentric, do you really think she has enough guts to pull the trigger? She can't even fight without bickering about her hair." Castigate said, without thinking.

"YOU!" Rarity shouted, pointing the cannon at him. "You still think I'm a fat pig!"

Castigate gulped loudly as his eyes widened.

"Ahaha…haha…ha, can we talk about this…"

"Sorry, but I think you've talked enough." Rarity said, about to fire the cannon.

"NO WAIT, I'M TOO RICH AND HANDSOME TO DIE!"

Rarity had to admit, seeing Castigate cry like a mare was almost saddening, that is, until Eccentric kneed her in the stomach and pointed the blaster away from the scene. As the blaster went off, it sent a large blue wave of power into the sky, practically alerting everypony of their location.

"GIVE ME BACK MY GUN!" Eccentric shouted, grabbing the blaster from Rarity's hoof.

"Not this time Eccentric!" Applejack shouted courageously.

She charged at full speed and collided right into the brown stallion, forcing him into a tree and knocking the cannon into the air. As Eccentric stood up on his hind legs to get a better advantage, Applejack bucked him right into the stomach several times, making the tree give way to the pounding.

"Is this really all of your strength, this is pathetic, to think I thought you were-

Out of fear or courage to defend her friends, she used all her strength to buck Eccentric one last time. However, her aim was slightly off; because her final blow landed a bit lower then she wanted…

"^#( # )(* &!*$)$ *#$)&$*! #$*! *&&^)$(_ !*%!&)*!(^#!&( _)!" Eccentric screamed, falling to the dirt.

Everypony stared in shock, other than Castigate; they had never heard a stallion scream like a woman.

"Eccentric…what just happened…" Castigate asked in fear.

"SHE FREAKEN BUCKED ME IN THE..." Eccentric tried to say, before vomiting on the ground.

Applejack felt so bad for him that she took off her hat and put it to her chest.

"Maybe now you can think about what you two have done, come on Applejack, were leaving."

As Rarity turned around, she bumped into an all too familiar orange pegasus.

"Leaving so soon…" Ammisive said with a wicked grin.

He wasted no time in punching Rarity straight into Applejack, sending the two rolling into another large tree.

"Stritin, the other three will be here any moment…let's make a surprise for them." He said, unfurling his wings with a spark of electricity.

"Just give me a second." Stritin said, snapping the ropes around Castigate with ease.

"It's about time you brainless idiots came along." Castigate said, letting his horn glow with silver magic and healing Eccentric.

"Well these brainless idiots just saved your life…now let's finish this." Ammisive smirked.

"Not if we have anything to say about it!"

Ammisive spun around just in time for Rainbow to knee him across the jaw, before taking a defensive potion in front of Applejack and Rarity. Seconds later, Pinkie and Lightning Dust came into the picture, helping the two downed ponies to their hooves.

"Your just five weak ponies! What can you do to us?" Ammisive said, enraged.

"Alone we are powerless, but together we can make a difference!" Lightning said bravely.

"That's it, I say we fry these ponies once and for all!" Ammisive yelled.

"RIGHT!"

The dis-elements formed a square to surround their entrapped opponents, each powering up to use their best move.

"YOU'RE FREEDOM DIES TODAY EVERYPONY! PREPARE TO LEAVE THIS WORLD FOREVER!" Ammisive yelled, laughing evilly.

"EVEN IF YOU DESTROY US, YOU WILL NEVER DESTROY WHAT WE STAND FOR!" Rainbow yelled with courage.

Ammisive slammed his hooves together, forming a large lightning ball. Meanwhile, Stritin had been enveloped in dark blue aura while Castigate was enveloped with bright silver. Lastly, Eccentric hoof cannon shinned brightly with light blue energy.

"FIRE!"

All the dis-elements screamed in unison as they used all the power they had to fire into one concentrated spot. Creating a large mixture of colors and destruction before it all exploded in one large burst of power that sent dirt and rocks flying in all directions. From the outside, all that appeared to be left was smoke and rubble. That is, until the smoke cleared to show a large lavender shield of magic protecting not five, but six ponies.

"TWILIGHT!" Everypony shouted in shock.

"You have had your chance to change, you have had your chance to turn, but now is see words alone will not change you!"

Twilight's horn glowed violently, making the shield overload.

"You try to hurt my friends, the very ones that have tried to save you from your evil ways! You've turned all of Equestria into a war zone because of your crimes, BUT BY CELESTIA'S POWER, I WILL NOT LET GET AWAY WITH THIS ANYMORE!"

Twilight's eyes turned bright white as she stood on her hind legs and let out an ear piercing scream. The shield that once protected them suddenly shot outward and repulsed. The ponies outside had no idea how to reach as they were suddenly blasted away from the display of power.

"That *pant* should *pant* do it." Twilight said, before collapsing onto the ground.

As if on cue, Enderpearl and Endershine appeared.

"Why do you two always show up late?" Rainbow said, annoyed.

"Doesn't matter right now...Endershine, take Twilight and find another exit. I'll show these ponies the opening we discovered in the hatred wave." Enderpearl said

"Hold up, why can't you just take all of us?" Rarity asked.

"Because they're still looking for Twilight, and Dark Fire would be able to detect us if we teleported with her, now let's go.

Enderpearl got all the ponies together, aside from Twilight and her sister, and teleported.

"Twilight, are you all right?" Endershine asked, filtering some of her energy into her.

"Yeah…just give me a moment."

"Just brace yourself, I'm about to transmit us to the other side of the forest. That should by us time before Enderpearl arrives."

"Wait, what about Fluttershy? She wasn't with the group!"

"I'm sure she's fine, if anything, she knows more about the forest then most ponies in here. She'll be safe, I promise."

* * *

The two of them teleported and reappeared near multiple destroyed trees and shriveled up plant life. What frightened them the most was the countless bodies of ponies lying all over the ground where they stood.

"What the heck just happened here?" Endershine almost yelled.

Twilight walked over to one of the bodies and examined it closely.

"They're not…you know…but in a coma." Twilight said, putting her hoof on the body. "He's cold to the touch...but that makes no scenes."

"What could do this to them?" Endershine asked.

Twilight scanned the pony with her magic before freezing up like and ice cube.

"No…I can't be." Twilight whispered out of fright.

"What! What is it?!" Endershine asked, anxiously.

"Black magic…" Twilight whispered, before the sound of ominous singing reach both of their ears.

"Twinkle, twinkle, little star,  
How I hated what you are.  
Up above the world so high,  
Like a coward in the sky.

When the blazing sun is gone,  
When nothing shines upon,  
Then you show your little light,  
Twinkle, twinkle, all the night."

Twilight and Endershine froze in place, unable to comprehend what was touching their ears.

"Then the pony in the dark,  
curses you for your tiny spark,  
He could see which way to go,  
till you twinkled so.

In the dark black sky you reap,  
And often through my curtains creep,  
For you never shut your eye,  
'Till the moon is in the sky.

As your bright and tiny spark,  
shuns the pony in the dark.  
Though I know not what you are,  
Twinkle, twinkle, little star."

Endershine managed to snap out of her trance to see a dark green pony about twenty feet high in a blackened tree, leaning on a withered branch.

Twinkle, twinkle, little star.  
How I hated what you are.  
Up above the world so high,  
Like a coward in the sky.

Twinkle, twinkle, little star.  
Oh how I wonder when you would fall…

A large moment of silence overcame the three ponies as a small gush of calm wind passed by the area, making Twilight's and Endershine's hair sway in the wind softly.

"Run…" The pony whispered, smirking evilly.

Twilight made an insane dash into the forest, attempting to escape. Endershine quickly ran up next to her and stopped her in her tracks.

"Twilight, what's gotten into you!" Endershine asked.

"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND, WE HAVE TO GET AWAY!"

"At last she understand..." The dark green pony said, stepping out of the dark. "That I'm not to be trifled with."

"Who are you anyways?" Endershine asked, preparing to fight.

"My name is above all your pathetic names...I am Desolent, the destroyer of civilization and the taker of life."

"You don't seem that strong to me..."

"Endershine please...we have to get away from him." Twilight begged.

"She's right for once." Desolent added. "My power is now equal if not surpassed Dark Fire's. And unlike him, I will not be so lenient to my victims."

"Your words mean nothing to me, you heartless beast." Endershine yelled.

"What of it...that little mare you guard so carefully turned me into this. This is all from her doing."

"Come and take her then!" Endershine shouted, flaring her wings.

"No...What are you doing!" Twilight shouted.

"Hahahahahaha! I don't have to..."

Loud screams were heard from the distance, as if the entire forest shrieked at once. The two ponies looked around I'm awe as they saw dozens upon dozens of ponies emerge from the forest and even the ground.

"When I have my slaves to do it for me. Twilight, I would like you to whiteness for the first and the last time, my army of the undead."

"Desolent that kind of magic is to powerful, even for Celestia!"

"Does it look like I'm Celestia...poor Twilight, your all that's left of a weak race of unicorns."

"That is soon to change however...soon you will fall just like the rest...soon you will feel the cold embrace of darkness."

Desolent smiled wickedly as he pointed his hoof at Twilight.

"Fetch me her soul!"

"Twilight, get behind me and power up a teleportation spell!" Endershine shouted, as the hoard of ponies ran towards them.

Endershine's horn glowed bright white as she started to fire bright beams of light into her opponents, disintegrating or blasting them back in the process.

"I...I can't, something is blocking my magic!" Twilight panicked.

"Blocking your magic, how?!" Endershine asked, blasting several ponies.

"You think I would just let you get away so easily, fools!" Desolent yelled. "Twilight's magic has been slowly draining ever since she entered my presence, and this alicorn will be no different."

"You can't just drain someponies magic, that requires too much power!" Endershine stated, punching back more undead ponies.

"Typical alicorn, always to stubborn to admit when somepony was stronger than them. Oh how I wish I could have disposed of Celestia in such a way."

"If you think you're so strong, then come face me alone!" Endershine yelled, starting to feel sore.

"Hehehe, so quick to fight me, yet so little experience."

"I'll make you eat those words you coward!"

"Good, because the city of Los Pegaus wasn't quite filling for me..."

"You did what." Endershine whispered, increasing in anger.

"I absorbed your silly little town, made everypony suffer for what they did...and best of all, I made sure no pony escaped."

"I can still see the looks on those fillies' faces when I took their family away...HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"I'LL KILL YOU!" Endershine screamed, summoning a wave of light that vaporized everything around her and charge at Desolent.

Endershine punched Desolent right in the muzzle with all her strength, almost being satisfied when she saw blood hit the ground before her. However, to her shock, Desolent did not yell in pain, nor flinch from her blow, he just stood there laughing.

"It amuses me how much you care for those you have never meet...perhaps you should join them in their suffering."

Endershine stood frozen as Desolent moved her hoof away from his face and placed his own on her chest. The atmosphere around her became distorted as she suddenly flew back fifty feet passed Twilight. Being dazed, Endershine struggled to get back up, but the waves of undead ponies started to dog pile upon her body, increasing her struggle.

"Now do you now see why this whole dilemma was fruitless Twilight...nopony can defeat my army." Desolent said, creeping up behind her. "I'm going to enjoy having you struggle in my hooves while I take your life away."

Twilight spun around and quickly punched him in the face. Desolent let her make contact, only to make a point that she could not win. He then picked her up by the throat with his hoof and held her in the air.

"Don't worry, when I'm done with you, I'll come after Dark Fire as well. Hopefully he can keep you company while you suffer endlessly within me! HAHAHAHAHA!"

A large scream was heard behind Desolent as a large beam of light blasted through the mountain of undead ponies. Desolent turned to look at Endershine suddenly explode out of the pile, vaporizing everything around her.

"Good, now you can watch Twilight slowly depart from this life right before your ey-

Endershine glowed brightly as she teleported next to Twilight, grabbed her, and then vanished at the speed of light. Desolent stood in place, motionless, until he slowly started to shake with anger.

"FIND HER YOU WORTHLESS DOGS!" Desolent screamed, summoning more creatures from the ground. "I WANT HER DESTROYED!"

* * *

Endershine and Twilight reappeared, practically exhausted but safe for the moment.

"How much longer till Enderpearl returns?" Twilight asked, panting.

"He'll have to find us magically…wait I could just teleport to him!" Endershine shouted, joyfully.

As she tried, she realized that most of her magic was drained from the resent battle. You know, because everything has to be so darn convenient.

"Twilight…my magic is almost completely exhausted. Who is that unicorn?"

"I…I can't remember right now or why he hates me so much, but the things he's capable of can't be acquired by normal means." Twilight said, scrambling thoughts to her head. "WAIT, I REMEMBER NOW! He was Celestia's-

Desolent abruptly appeared in large flash of dark green and black a few yards away from them.

"WHERE ARE YOU TWILIGHT!" Desolent shouted to the top of his lungs, sending out an eco.

Endershine grabbed Twilight and hid behind a large tree just before he looked their way.

"I'LL SEARCH FOR THOUSAND YEARS IF IT MEANS DESTROYING YOU!"

The two hidden ponies remained silent as Desolent continued to vent out his rage. Seconds turned to minutes as minutes turned to hours as the dark green unicorn continued to search.

"Fine then…if you refuse to face me…then I have already won. As my final demonstration of power, I shall black out the entire planet, wiping out all life…forever."

Desolent's horn was slowly corroded in black and green magic as he closed his eyes. A small, transparent ball soon formed a few inches away from his face as he slowly lowered it to his chest level. Grabbing the ball with his fore-legs, he transmitted all his magic and energy into the compressed space.

"Is…is he doing what I think he's doing?!" Twilight almost screamed.

"Twilight, we have to leave while he's distracted."

"No Endershine, if we let him do this, there will be nowhere else to go, nowhere else to hide."

"No amount of magic could ever do that!" Endershine stated, almost in panic.

"Try science, he's making a nuclear fission, causing that tiny area of space to go into critical mass."

"That's impossible, even for him." Endershine said, refusing to believe.

"Even if it's not, we can't just stand here and watch it happen."

"But Twilight…I have nothing left to fight him with."

Twilight grabbed Endershine and pinned her to the tree with aggression.

"It's either that, or we all parish in fire! NOW GO!"

Twilight, either out of love for Equestria or by a miracle, somehow managed to give Endershine enough power to make her entire body shine brightly and hair to shoot upwards with magical power. Her bright white and yellow aura had returned to her, giving her all she needed.

"A NEW DAY SHALL FALL UPON EQUESTIA, AS I RISE ABOVE THE ASHES TO DESTROY THE ENTIRE PLANET!" Desolent yelled, laughing insanely.

The ball expanded three times its size as he continued to hold it in his hooves.

"I gave you a chance to face me Twilight, now you shall parish along with this entire world!"

Just as he was about to throw the ball in a random direction, Endershine appeared in front of him and slammed her hoof into his chest, actually making him flinch. What she didn't expect was for Desolent to shove the ball into her chest, making it crack and threatening to explode. Endershine quickly summoned all her magic and pushed back the ball while Desolent did the same. A large display of colors suddenly collided into each other, forcing the ball to and fro between the two ponies in a power struggle. Rocks, dirt, trees, and anything in the area was quickly blasted away as a crater formed below the two. Twilight, in the distance, was struggling to hold onto anything that would keep her from flying away.

"So this is your final attempt to safe Equestria? Well then, I can't say I'm impressed!" Desolent mocked.

"You use your power to hurt other! What kind of honor is in that!" Endershine yelled, exerting more force.

"I don't expect an immortal to understand, your race as always been filled with pride and arrogance just like your leaders!"

"So destroying everything will enlighten me?!"

"No, destroying everything will make a point."

"A point?! YOU'RE DOING ALL OF THIS JUST TO MAKE A POINT?"

"And what makes your cause more just then mine! IF IT'S SO PURE AND RIGHTIOUS THEN STOP ME, STOP ME FROM GETTING MY REVENGE ON THAT STUPID MARE YOU CALL A FRIEND!"

Endershine's aura overpowered Desolent's as she screamed as loud as she could. With her dominance established for this brief moment in time, she threw the ball into the air with all her strength. She knew this wouldn't be enough to stop the threat and with Desolent still controlling the ball, he could easily set it off wherever it went. She kicked forward with her hind-leg, sending Desolent into a thorn bush and shot what appeared to be a comet into the ball, sending it deep into space. The ball twinkled in the sky before it abruptly exploded with enough force to be felt on the surface where they stood.

"That…should do it." Endershine whispered, falling to the ground unconscious.

Desolent couldn't help but laugh as he approached her.

"Look at that, after your display of heroism, you now lay powerless before me." He chuckled, levitating her body and propping her up. "What did it prove though? Prove you're willing to sacrifice your life for a coward...for a powerless fool?"

Desolent's right hoof flashed with black and green aura as he held Endershine with his magic.

"Your entire race perished because they were too concerned for others rather than themselves. Your little stunt of bravery was no exception, thus I shall give you a hero's departure, it's the least I can give you…goodbye."

Desolent was suddenly blasted back with magic, letting go of his grip on Endershine. He looked up angrily to see Twilight emerge from the darkness of the forest.

"You dare attack me!"

"I've seen enough from you, all you do is take and destroy just because Celestia made me her apprentice, because you think I took everything from you. Well enough is enough, if I must suffer for the good of everypony else then so be it!"

"You have nothing left Twilight, yet you're going to fight your better…please. The power you're giving off wouldn't even intimidate a house fly!"

"Strength alone doesn't win a battle, but the courage and will to-

"Stand up for your friends and bla bla bla!" Desolent said, interrupting her. "Let me tell you something before you parish…WE'RE IN REAL LIFE! This friendship crap you're spouting is just a bunch of lies! Maybe you got spoiled side of life, but I got the worst life had to offer. Where was friendship when my dad beat me to near death, where was friendship when my mom suffered for me to give me another day of life, WHERE WAS FRIENDSHIP WHEN I WATCHED MY MOM EXECUTED BEFORE MY EYES!"

Desolent's eyes dilated as he continued to stare into Twilight eyes.

"There was none…now I am the product of their sins, the spawn of their creation, AND I WILL MAKE THEM AND THIS ENTIRE PLANET SUFFER FOR WHAT THEY DID!"

"I won't let you…" Twilight whispered.

"In the very words that they told me…the weak will die and the strong will survive. As much as I hate that phrase, it to this day remains true." Desolent said, pointing his hoof at Twilight. "You don't deserve what you have!"

"And what do I have that you don't, the will to fight for other?" Twilight asked, angered.

"Happiness…"

Desolent fired a fairly large ball at Twilight that was more than capable of taking her out. Just before it hit, a large dark figure appeared and deflected the ball away from scene, sending it hurling into the distance. The explosion shinned brightly, revealing the dark figure to be Enderpearl.

"So you're the cause of all this desolation!" Enderpearl said, using his normal, uncaring voice.

"Another alicorn?! You're race just doesn't know when to give up does it!"

Enderpearl ignored him, looking back to Twilight and his unconscious sister.

"Twilight, what happened here?"

"Enderpearl, we don't have time, we must escape while we still can!" Twilight advised with force.

"What happened here!" Enderpearl asked, becoming more aggressive.

Twilight slowly pointed a hoof at Desolent.

"He defeated your sister…and almost took the entire forest with her."

"How can a simple unicorn match an alicorn? We are the strongest and most powerful out of the equine group."

"NO, Don't underestimate him like your sister did, he's as strong as Dark Fire!"

"You should listen to your master, Enderpearl, I'm a lot stronger then I put out to be." Desolent mocked.

"You don't have to right to mock our race, pony." Enderpearl said sternly.

"Really, and you're not, oh that's right, you're a pony dragon hybrid! An abomination to all of Equestria!"

"Leave us while you still can peasant, you're not worthy to talk to a prince."

"You alicorns are so arrogant and prideful! It makes me sick!"

"We have established ourselves as the rulers of Equestira! None can ever surpass us!"

"Really now, is that why Dark Fire has the throne, why Sombra is considered king and why Chrysalis defeated Celestia! Dominance is established by power and actions, not birthright, and you don't even have that! You're just a banished 'prince', a shame to the royal family!"

Enderpearl continued to stay calm as he stared into Desolent.

"Prove it then, prove you have enough power to defeat me. I'll be here, waiting."

Twilight's eyes widened as she stared fearfully at Enderpearl.

"NO, STOP THIS NOW; YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING!"

"Haha…HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Desolent laughed, staring at Enderpearl evilly. "So you want to see me at full power huh! Well then, don't let me stop you; I'll enjoy ripping that prideful heart right out of your chest!"

Desolent stood on his hind hooves, extending his hooves to the side of his body.

"Are you ready…to see a power not even the greatest magicians could ever imagine? TO SEE A POWER NOT SINCE THE BIRTH OF OUR UNIVERSE!"

Desolent's eyes turned from dark purple to bright yellow as black and green aura surrounded the dark pony. With a loud scream, the aura expanded ten times in size, ripping out trees from their foundation as the area around him turned into a live tornado of power and light. The sky itself seemed to darken as the pony continued to scream to the top of his lungs. Lightning flashed in all directions as Desolent continued, not caring what was destroyed around him. Meanwhile, Enderpearl remained in his place, un-amused and unfazed.

"ENDERPEARL, STOP THIS BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE!" Twilight screamed.

Enderpearl continued to ignore her, continuing to watch this nightmare unfold before his eyes. Twilight could here Desolent start to laugh wickedly at her attempt to stop the inevitable. The ground started to give way under Desolent, making the ground look like it was hit by a meteor. As if it could get worse, the earthquakes that Desolent was creating started to become more violent by each second. Desolent's hair suddenly shot up like spikes on a porcupine and his overall bodymass started to increase as he became more muscular. Finally, Desolent let out one last yell before he exploded with magic and energy, making a crater beneath him.

Desolent now stood before them, about two times as muscular with small volts of lightning flashing around him from time to time.

"Are you impressed?! This is what the power of black magic and necromancy is capable of!" Desolent shouted with pride.

"Is this all you have, I shouldn't be surprised from a simple unicorn." Enderpearl said, uncaring.

Desolent chuckled at his comment before suddenly appeared in front of Enderpearl and punched his stomach with enough force to make the ground shake. Enderpearl was taken into complete shock and awe, realizing he had just made one of the biggest mistakes of his life. Desolent, on the other hoof, was not about to let him off so easily. Faster than most ponies could see, Desolent side kicked Enderpearl across the face, sending him flying deep into the forest. Desolent gave Twilight a smirk before he vanished without the use of magic, but by speed alone.

"ENDERSHINE, YOU HAVE TO WAKE UP NOW! YOUR BROTHER IS IN TROUBLE!" Twilight said, running to her body. "Oh, why do stallions have to be so stupid!"

* * *

Enderpearl slide across the ground before rolling to a painful stop. Desolent appeared several hundred feet away just before charging at him like a glowing green rocket. Enderpearl's eyes widdend as he rapidly stood to his hooves and fire magical blast towards him. Desolent traveled in a zigzag pattern before colliding into Enderpearl once more. Enderpearl gasped loudly as he was slammed into the tree and took several powerful but rapid blows to the face and chest. Grabbing one of his hooves, Enderpearl attempted to throw off the aggressive unicorn, but it was all in vain.

Desolent reestablished his footing on the ground before vanishing behind him and bucking him in the back. Fighting through the pain, Enderpearl spun around and fire a large purple blast of magic at Desolent. He on the other hoof, just dived right into it, as if it was like water to his fur, and punched Enderpearl in the muzzle. Acting quickly, Enderpearl spun around and kicked Desolent in the side, but once again, he acted like nothing had happened and continued his onslaught. Dodging as much as possible, Enderpearl attempted to keep up with the pony, but it was too much. He just continued to rapidly teleport and vanish all around the poor alicorn, making predicting his movements almost impossible.

Desolent then slammed his hoof into Enderpearl's face once again, being followed by another dozen combos that would make any video game crash. Enderpearl was now forced to use deadly measures he thought he would never use. After getting launched a few dozen yards away from the pony, Enderpearl used his magic to manipulate the ground to his advantage. As Desolent approached at rapid speed, Enderpearl made pillars of rock sprout out from where he was and where he would be. While Desolent had to take extra measures, Enderpearl lifted a large bolder from the ground and chucked it at him.

The dark green pony though none of it when he actually allowed the boulder to smash into him, making the boulder shatter upon him. Enderpearl was frightened when he clearly saw that Desolent had been wounded, but just continued to charge at him. Going back into a shot exchange, he saw that Desolent had bruises and cuts leaking blood all over him, frightening him even more.

"WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU, NOPONY CAN TAKE THAT MUCH PAIN!" Enderpearl yelled, exerting more effort.

"My power feeds off of pain and hatred, the more damage I take the more powerful I become. This means you have no chance of defeating me."

"WELL, I GUESS I'LL JUST HAVE TO TRY HARDER!"

Enderpearl locked Desolent into a power struggle, attempting to somehow find a weakness in this insane fighter. Desolent had other plans though, as he suddenly pushed Enderpearl back and slammed him into the ground, making it shatter. He then flipped over the downed alicorn and launched him into the air with his magic. Enderpearl looked down to see that Desolent had vanished once again, only for him to reappear behind him and slam him back down to the surface with both hooves. Enderpearl crashed like a bomb and practically exploded like one as well before Desolent abruptly jabbed his elbow into Enderpearls stomach.

"ARE YOU DONE ALREADY! FIGHT ME YOU PATHETIC WORM!" Desolent shouted, grabbing Enderpearl by the neck and throwing him along the ground, making him glide through the dirt like water.

As Enderpearl came to a stop, Desolent appeared above him and smashed his hoof into his face, forcing it under the ground. He then levitated him with magic and punched him into a tree without letting go of his magical grip. Imitating a balloon on a string, he punched the alicorn into random object, only to pull him towards him and do it again in rapid successions. After what seemed to be hours to the alicorn, Desolent summoned energy into his hoof and blasted Enderpearl as he few towards him. As the smoke cleared, it revealed Enderpearl on the ground with scorched fur and open wounds.

"YOU SEE WHAT YOUR ARROGANCE HAS DONE! HERE YOU LAY, A BROKEN SHELL OF YOURSELF!" Desolent yelled, flying into the air.

Desolent put his hooves into the air, summoning a humongous green ball of energy that could be seen for miles. The ball had a black center and was highlighted by a black line, giving it the affect of a black hole.

"LETS SEE YOUR ALICORN PRIDE GET YOU OUT OF THIS!" Deolent said, throwing the ball.

Enderpearl's eyes widened as he starred into the ball of death. Releasing all the energy he had left, he stood on his hind hooves and slammed his fore-legs into the ball before it hit the surface. Rapidly sinking into the ground, he knew it had to be done. Using his heart and body as life energy, he flung the ball into space, seeing it for the last time. As he fell to the ground, Desolent couldn't help but fold his hooves and smirk.

"Just like your sister, giving it all to save nothing." He said, floating down next to him. "But this isn't over for you yet."

Enderpearl, in anger, grabbed Desolent throat with both hooves. The unicorn only chuckled as he kneed the alicorn in the stomach and threw him into the sky. Not letting the alicorn touch the ground, Desolent turned it into a ping-pong game, knocking Enderpearl around in mid-air. After some time, he grabbed Enderpearl by the back of his neck and held him in mid-flight.

"To think, you thought this would be an easy fight, hehehe. I'll tell you a secret, I can go a step beyond what you're seeing, making my power now seems insignificant."

Enderpearl struggled to breath from the beating, but hearing this news almost made him want to give up right then and there.

"But your unworthy to see it…not yet at least."

Desolent spun around slowly and threw Enderpearl as hard as he could to where Twilight and Endershine was.

Several moments before

"There, you have enough energy to move around without struggling." Twilight said, sweating.

"Where's my brother, he should have been here by now."

"He went off to fight Desolent, I warned him not to."

"We have to find him then!"

A large crash was heard behind the two. Turning around, they saw Enderpearl completely wounded and deprived of any magic. Desolent then appeared in front of Twilight.

"There, I have defeated your champions, now become part of the ultimate weapon!"

"I'm not done yet…"

Desolent turned around to see Enderpearl weakly standing before him.

"WHY WON'T YOU JUST STAY DOWN?!" Desolent screamed, ready to blast Enderpearl with all his power.

Before he could do it though, Endershine grabbed Desolent, restraining any movement. Enderpearl had no time to talk as he charged forward and started to punch Desolent in the chest and stomach. Overcome in complete rage, Desolent exploded with dark green energy, throwing the two alicorns off him.

"I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU TWO, PREPARE TO DIE!"

Enderpearl and Endershine slammed into Desolent, using all their power and will to stop this unicorn once and for all, but at the cost of their life source. As Desolent was hit for the last time, he jabbed Endershine in the neck, making her fall to the floor paralyzed. Enderpearl, overcome with rage, exploded with power as he fire all the magic he had in one last beam of light. Unfortunately it was not enough, as Desolent emerged unharmed.

"This fight…is over."

Desolent suddenly appeared and punched Enderpearl in the stomach for the last time. Enderpearl felt a sharp, but incredibly large pain as the blow hit. Looking down, he saw that Desolent had literally punched his hoof through his entire body. He shook with pain before Desolent side kicked his face into a large pool of water, ending the fight.

"ENDERPEARL!" Endershine screamed, as tears fell down her face.

"SHUT UP!" Desolent shouted lifting his hind-leg passed his muzzle and slamming it back down on the back of her head, sending out tremors within the earth. "Thus ends the sad lives of these two alicons." Desolent laughed, glaring at Twilight.

Twilight starred in horror, falling on her back as Desolent approached her. As she continued to back up, she bumped into a broken tree.

"Now there is nothing left to save you..." Desolent said, pinning her to the tree. "What a waste of time, hunting you down…but I always get what I want." He said, applying his hoof to Twilight's cheek. "Now your journey ends…"

"Not today."

Twilight eyes glowed brightly as she applied her hooves onto Desolent's chest, making him glow bright lavender.

"In honor of Night Shadow…Imma firing my lazor."

Desolent screamed loudly before he was blasted back by two large balls of magic and send into the darkness of the forest. Twilight watched as the magical balls exploded, exhausting everything she had before falling unconscious. Seconds later, five ponies appeared in a burst of red magic.

"There she is." Dark Fire said, relived. "Quick, recover her before Desolent returns."

Ammisive grabbed Twilight and put her on his back while Stritin, Eccentric, and Castigate secured the area.

"Castigate, teleport to Canterlot, I'll meet you four there."

"Sir, what about Maneful?" Castigate asked.

"I'm sure she's fine, just go."

The four vanished with Twilight, leaving Dark Fire alone. As soon as they were gone, he rushed over to Endershine.

"I'm so going to regret this later…"

Dark Fire's eyes glowed bright blue as he healed her, but kept her unconscious.

"That should do, I hope Enderpearl is alright though." He said, before vanishing without a trace.

Darkness fell upon Equestria that day, with Twilight captured and Desolent still on the loose, who know what could happen. With Twilight's only protectors left for the wolves, is there any chance they could bounce back and free Equestria, or is all hope lost forever…


	27. Chapter 16 D

**My editing skills SUCK! But anyways, yeah I'm back for now. However, the chapters keep getting longer and require more time, so i might need more then a weeks time. Anyways, just read the darn thing.**

Chapter 16 D: Tainted and Desecrated. (Part one of two)

"She appears to be slipping in and out of conscious sir."

"It doesn't matter; just do what I've told you…

One hour passes.

"She's awake again."

"My lord, her vital signs are fading!"

"You call yourselves doctors? Bring her back to health!"

"We're losing her!"

"Another dose of the drug, NOW!"

"Her heart rate is dropping!"

"Find the problem this instant!"

"Sir, she's losing conscious…"

Another hour passes.

"So this is it, the final test before Equestria's fate is decided…I hope you're making the right decision…

* * *

Twilight awoke abruptly, taking a deep breath and looked around. The area she was in was indeed a prison, but it seemed…nice. The walls and floor were decorated in all sorts of colors; the beds were laid out with comfortable cloth, giving it a hotel type feeling. It even had a window, with bars of course. Looking to the exit, the prison bars were replaced with steel and seemed to be humming with magic.

"Well, this doesn't quit fit home but it's better than I thought it would be."

"I'm glad you're doing better, so you like the scenery?" A voice asked from behind her.

"Dark Fire!" Twilight yelled, jumping back a few feet.

"Well, I asked you a question? Do you like it; I had it designed just for you."

"I…" Twilight looked around the room again. "It's…alright."

"Well that's good…"

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Twilight finally asked.

"Let's just say a voice in my head told me to."

"Night Shadow?" Twilight asked.

"No...the other one."

"Can I…talk to Night Shadow?"

"That…isn't possible right now."

"Why!" Twilight said, almost angrily. "I haven't seen him in over nine months, maybe even ten, and your telling me I can't talk to him?"

"Why do you care anyways? You hate him!"

"NO!" Twilight shouted. "I love him…"

"Even after everything he did…what I did, you still love him."

Twilight nodded slowly, as a small tear fell down her face.

"So why can't I see him?" Twilight asked, saddened.

"Because he refuses to speak." Dark Fire told her.

"What?"

"It's easier if it just show…"

Dark Fire faded through the prison bars and stood before Twilight.

"We have to be close for this to work." Dark Fire said, taking a step forward.

Twilight stepped back, obviously concerned.

"What makes you think I can trust you?" Twilight asked.

"Well, I wouldn't have given you such a nice room, saved your from Desolent, or saved you through the help of medicine if I wanted to hurt you now would I?"

"You have always been a deceiver Dark Fire…it's not like much has changed."

"Do you want to see Night Shadow of not!?" He finally shouted.

Twilight sighed loudly, walking up to him.

"Now stand still…"

Dark Fire touched his horn to Twilights, causing her to blush. It soon faded when the room around them suddenly ripped apart, showing a large dark void with a beam of light shining on what looked like a giant, clear ball.

"Wha…what is this place?" Twilight asked.

"This is my mind, Twilight. Where all my decisions are made…"

"Dark Fire, what are you doing?" The good form of Night Shadow asked, appearing before them.

"Night Shadow?"

"No Twilight, Night Shadow is over there…"

He pointed to the giant ball. Twilight squint her eyes to see Night Shadow floating inside the ball, bound to black ropes of darkness.

"NIGHT SHADOW!" Twilight screamed, running to him.

"Twilight no!" Dark Fire said, grabbing her tail. "It's not that simple."

"What do you mean, he's right-

"He is in a coma so to speak, he's lost in his own…my mind…constantly replaying his memories from start to finish." The good form Night Shadow spoke.

"Is there no way of freeing him?"

"There might be, and that is why I need your help." Dark Fire said, vanishing from her eyes.

The void suddenly returned back to the prison room, like nothing had happened.

"I…I want to be good again." Dark Fire told her.

"What…well why that is hard, you imprisoned Night Shadow in the first place?"

"Because of two things Twilight. One, I want to separate from him and live my own life among you, be my own pony."

"Is that possible?" Twilight asked, confused.

"Yes…but there's a catch."

Twilight nodded.

"If I separate, I will have no sense of right and wrong, no conscience. Me, naturally being the evil self will have no control over my actions and only act out in pure evil. This form you see in now is Night Shadow preventing his true evil from being released. I was never meant to be, I am a mix of Neutral and evil. However, there is hope." Dark Fire explained, being nervous. "If I come into contact with the elements of harmony, my evil will be erased, only leaving a neutral conscious…but if I am attacked by darkness or corruption…this will happen."

Dark Fire used an illusion spell and used the room as a live theater.

"I witnessed this in a dream not too long ago, and I'm convinced that this is the future." Dark Fire said, bleakly.

Twilight looked around, seeing countless ponies in shackles and chains. The sky itself was filled with black smoke that blocked out the night sky while skyscrapers touched the heavens. With the swipe of Dark Fire's hoof, the appeared in the throne room, where he was.

"They call him…me…Death Fire. He is a heartless king that enslaves the entire planet and brings hell itself into a once peaceful world. His power surpasses mine by tenfold and has almost full control of the black book that I once tried to use before. This is what was supposed to originally happen, until Night Shadow stopped me in mid-transformation. Now, it's time to prevent this Nightmare from ever arising. Will you help us?"

Twilight nodded joyfully, hugging Dark Fire.

"Thank you…for finally finding your way."

"There's only one problem and one condition…" Dark Fire said bleakly, struggling to hug back.

"What is it…"

"The condition is that if the Elements of harmony imprison me rather than free me, you must accept and forgive my friends. Nightmare Moon, Chrysalis, Sombra, all of them, you must help them become free from their pain. They're not evil, there just misunderstood and afraid. Please tell your princess this; I don't want them to suffer if I have to."

"Ok, I will. So what is the problem?"

"You must duel Trixie…my marefriend."

Twilight abruptly slapped Dark Fire across the muzzle.

"YOU'RE CHEATING ON ME!"

"We never were together, and she's so hot!" Dark Fire said, hiding behind the bed.

"I…I CAN'T…*large sigh* I guess I had my chance…" She said, in a saddened tone.

"You do realize that if this plan works, Night Shadow will be separated from me right?"

Twilight blinked a few time, frozen in place.

"Yeah…so I'll open a portal up so you can speak to your princess about what we've talked about." He said, blasting a portal into the wall.

"One more thing Darky…"

Twilight ran up to him and pecked him on the check.

"Trixie kisses better!" Dark Fire blurted out.

Twilight raised her hoof and grunted at Dark Fire before he ran off in a puff of smoke.

"Twilight…" A soothing voice said behind her.

"Celestia?" Twilight said, sniffling.

Twilight ran up to Celestia and latched onto her like a lost puppy.

"I've missed you so much!" Twilight said as her eyes watered.

"I have to Twilight…and so have others." Celestia said, gesturing to Cadence and Luna.

Twilight, being reunited with Celestia and the others, couldn't help but feel overjoyed. Even if she was in prison, she was with those that cared about her. About an hour passed just with them talking and establishing plans.

"I don't trust him." Blue Blood said, angrily.

"Well, you're just a frog." Cadence teased.

"Anyways, it just seems risky. Yes, our stay in prison has slowly turned into a five star hotel, but it just doesn't seem right." Luna said, staring out the window. "Dark Fire can not just simply, 'become good.'

"Going off subject for a moment, why haven't you tried to break out yet, it's not like your magic is being restrained like it used to." Twilight asked.

"It's the magic fields Twilight; they resist any type of magic or discharge. Discord put it up himself along with Dark Fire."

"They're slowly moving to advanced technology though. Soon, there will be no need for magic to power everything." Cadence added.

"I fear the worst though." Celestia intervened. "This electricity Dark Fire is so obsessed with can be used for a darker purpose. I have seen Canterlot grow from the time we have been here, and as its buildings rise, so does it's corruption."

"But if what you say about Dark Fire is true, then there is defiantly hope for redemption." Cadence said, happily.

"Let's focus on the now everypony, like how you four are going to break this curse on me." Blue Blood said, with impatience.

"Why don't I try?" Twilight asked, casting a transformation spell.

Blue Blood glowed violently with magic before turning into a cat.

"Now look what you've done, you fool!" Blue Blood yelled.

"Come now, thy looks cute in this form." Luna teased.

Everypony chuckled except for old grumpy cat until a metal door was heard slamming open. Several muffle sounds were heard from around the corner of the cell and then silence.

"What's going on…" Twilight asked.

As if answered immediately, a pony guard was sent tumbling down the stairs unconscious. They all stared awkwardly at the pony until a black robed pony with a hood walked in.

"You think you could get away that easily!"

"Desolent!" Twilight yelled.

"This time there really is no escape for you!"

"You're going to have to go through us Desolent!" Celestia said, stepping in front of Twilight.

"The Princess of the Night will not fall a second time!" Luna shouted.

"And I won't watch it happen again!" Cadence added.

Everypony looked at Blue Blood.

"Aren't you going to say something?" Twilight asked.

"I'm just a cat, what do you want me to say!" Blue Blood screamed.

"Whatever, now I can have the satisfaction of taking you out and the princess in one-

Desolent grabbed the prison bar and pulled, but nothing happened.

"What the buck?!" Desolent yelled, pulling harder. "You got to be kidding!"

Desolent let go of the bars and gave it one strong punch, making the shield ripple but nothing more. Twilight and the others just stared awkwardly as this once frightening pony was struggling to open a prison door.

"OF ALL THE THINGS TO PREVENT ME FORM DESTROYING YOU!" Desolent screamed, punching the field in rapid successions.

Desolent screamed loudly as he turned and bucked the field with all his strength, but nothing happened. He twitched in anger before his hooves were enveloped in black and green light.

"DESOLENT WAIT!" Celestia screamed, before he hit the field.

A large explosion occurred, but the ponies inside remained unharmed. Outside, the smoke cleared, showing a very pissed off pony.

"THIS IS BULL ^&#(, HOW CAN A &#( &# WALL STOP ME!"

"Watch your language there Desi…you might pinch a nerve." Luna snickered.

"Oh that's funny…THAT'S VERY *#&$( FUNNY!"

"Desolent, calm down, there's nothing you can do." Cadence suggested.

Desolent stared darkly before he sat down like and angry elephant.

"There, feeling better?" Cadance asked.

"Shut up."

"So you're just going to sit there and stare at us?" Twilight asked.

"You're the only thing left that stands in my way; it is my last true goal in life besides making the world suffer."

There was a pause in the conversation, long enough for everything to die down.

"What happened to you Desolent?" Celestia asked. "You used to be full of life, full of happiness, and suddenly it all vanished. What else did the necronomicon take away from you…Dust Breaker?"

Desolents eyes widened.

"DON'T EVER ADDRESS ME BY THAT NAME AGAIN!" he yelled, smashing the field.

"Dust Breaker?" Twilight repeated. "Wait, THAT WAS YOU IN THE ACADEMY!?"

"No Twilight…that was a different pony…a pony that has long departed from this world." Desolent whispered.

"Why are you like this, why are you so evil, so corrupted! What could have possible happened to make you like this!?" Twilight demanded, with rising sorrow.

"Very well, I shall retell my painful story from the very beginning…"

* * *

**Warning: ****Desolent's life is both saddening and disturbing, as said before he is the main reason why the fanfic is rated teen and maybe altered to mature. Read with caution…**

Thirty two years ago.

Location: Germania.

Twenty eight years before Luna's redemption…

"The child's power his hidden, but off the charts. He's stronger than any child we have ever seen!"

"What! Even the elite class?" A dark green unicorn with black hair asked.

"Yes sire…his magic well is almost as strong as yours."

"This is preposterous, inconceivable, and unacceptable…FROM A LOW CLASS HARLET! NO UNICORN CAN SURPASS ME IN POWER!"

"What shall we do clan leader Olympus?"

"I want this child executed immediately…"

Everypony looked towards the exit, seeing a gray unicorn mare with blond hair enter the open tent in torn rags.

"Please don't do it, I beg of you, look into your heart sire." The mare said, stepping forward.

Multiple guards stood up and restrained her, pushing her back to the exit.

"PLEASE, HE'S JUST A CHILD!"

"I will not stand idly by and watch a disaster destroy everything I have worked for!" Olympus said, walking to her.

"You haven't given him a chance; he could be a great ally, a great magician!"

"I have made my decision; he will not see the light of day…"

"BUT HE'S YOUR SON!"

"THEN YOU'LL DIE WITH HIM!"

With a flash of light, the mare was blasted out of the tent and crashed into the mud, making her already filthy coat turn brown. Olympus walked out of the tent, staring upon her with his dark green eyes.

"No son of mine comes from a harlot! Take her to her home!"

"You can't do this…you can't do this!" She screamed.

"You made the mistake of barring a child Salvia, no I must cleanse mine."

"No st-

Two guards grabbed the mare and muzzled her mouth as they dragged her hind-hoofs along the dirt road. About five minutes passed before they reached her broken down house.

"So this is where the filth sleeps." Olympus whispered. "Are you men ready…"

The guards unbound the mare and threw her into the house, meanwhile Olympus walked by her slowly, followed by another large guard. Salvia looked up to see the two overlooking a broken white crib. Olympus removed the white sheet as the guard levitated a dark green colt with black hair.

"So this is the sleeping child, the abomination to our land…Fast Draw…my sword." Olympus whispered.

The guards showed no signs of remorse as he handed a golden hilted saber to his clan leader. Olympus unsheathe the sword and examined it.

"As you can see, even your beloved leader makes mistakes, but unlike other I will correct them!" He said, pointing the sword to the child.

"STOP THIS, DOES YOUR CODE HAVE NO MERCY TO INNOCENT CHILDREN!"

"SILENCE!" A guard yelled, smashing his hoof against the back of her head.

The mare fell to the floor, watching her son float before Olympus.

"WITH THIS MY SINS ARE FORGIVEN!"

Salvia looked away, shutting her eyes in tears as she heard a sharp scream of pain.

"I hate you…I HATE YOU ALL YOU HEARTLESS MONSTERS!" Salvia screamed in tears.

Several guards laid out hay all over the floor before they departed and stood at the door. Olympus smirked as she continued to cry in the middle of the floor before he tossed a torch into the room, lighting everything on fire. Salvia soon came to her senses and ran to her child, attempting to cover the wound with her rags. She held the child in her hooves as the fire spread all around the house and her.

"I…I love you my son…don't let anypony else tell you differently."

She put all her strength into stopping the bleeding and keeping her son alive, but it was quickly fading as the fires grew larger and stronger.

"PLEASE, SOMEONE HELP US!" The mare screamed, holding her child closer to her.

Minutes passed, and still nothing happened…until the impossible happened. The child's hair slowly turned from black to pure white as his eyes shot open. His eyes glowed bright purple as a bubble of magic enveloped the two ponies, shielding them from the fire. The mare stared in shock at her son as he screamed loudly and repulsed the bubble outward, blowing away the fire and the house. The ponies outside were frightened as they saw the two ponies ascend into the sky and with a burst of magic, the two had vanished in a white flash.

"This isn't over…" Olympus whispered, staring into the dark, cloudy sky.

* * *

Seven years pass…

"Dust, where are you!" Salvia shouted, walking through a fairly large forest. "This isn't funny Dust, please come out."

Salvia continued to walk around, shouting for her son's name. That is until she found him staring into a pond.

"Dust, what are you doing?"

"I'm looking into the pond mother; it's a reflection of one's self, of one's past. See how it brightens when I look into it mother, because I have not done anything bad."

Salvia stood beside her soon and gazed into the pond. Seeing herself, all she could think about was how horrible her life was and still is.

"You see mother, the pond shivers at your reflection." Dust said, innocently.

Salvia saw, to her surprise, that the pond was losing brightness and that it was indeed "shivering" as he put it.

"My life might be tainted Dust, but your has only started. You have a chance to redeem our family from what it was…because you're my light in this darkened world."

"You mean redeem my father…you never told me about him mother, what was he like?"

"He was…let's not talk about him shall we?"

"You also never told me why I have this scar around my heart." Dust said, putting his hoof to his chest. "How did that happen?"

"You ask a lot of questions don't you, you little genius." Salvia grinned, tickling Dust.

Dust started to laugh uncontrollably as Salvia practically tickled him to death.

"Stop it mother, I hate it when you tickle me." Dust said, trying to control his laughter.

"Come on little one, let go home." She said, putting Dust on her back.

"Mom…I love you." Dust said, lying on her back, starting to fall asleep.

"I…I love you to Dust Breaker…I love you to." Salvia said, as a tear fell down her eye.

* * *

"Mother, where are you going?" Dust asked, sitting up from the bed.

"I'll be back Dust, go play with your friends, and then we can go eat somewhere." Salvia said, putting on her cloche.

"Mom, why is it when you leave, you always come back with a bag of bits, but you say you have no job."

"Dust…*sigh* some things are better left unsaid. Someponies or mare in this case, has to do what is needed in order to survive. I hope one day you can save me from this life of mine, but I must do this for you." Salvia said, closing the door.

Dust ran to the window, making sure her mother didn't see her. Salvia looked around before she put black hood up and walked to the illuminated city about two miles away.

"I wonder why mother always goes to the city; she tells me that a lot of bad things happen there." Dust pondered.

Even if Dust was a small colt, his constant study and fascination of magic gave him an advantage over all the others, making him very intelligent for his age. Dust waited a bit longer before he opened the door to his small house and followed his mom. About an hour passed until he reached the cities entrance.

"Welcome…to…Los…Pegasus." Dust sounded out, still having difficulty reading.

"Hey kid, isn't it passed your bed time." A city guard asked.

"Well…no…why?"

"It's an hour till mid-night kid…go back home." The guard said, without moving.

"Umm, ok then." Dust said, walking through the gate.

"Hey, I said go home kid." The guard said, getting aggravated.

"Well my house I like over there." Dust said, pointing inside.

"Really now, I'll follow you in then." The guard said.

"Hmmm, ok…you sure you can follow me though."

"Yes, now lead the way."

Dust's horn glowed before he suddenly dashed away in a green blur.

"WHAT THE HECK!" The guard shouted.

Dust finally stopped running after a minute had passed, giving him distance. He was surprised and awe struck by all the lights of the city, practically lighting up the area like Celestia's sun itself.

"This is so coooool!" Dust yelled, looking around with a smile.

"Hey, watch it kid!" A tipsy pony said, bumping into him.

"Oh, sorry…I didn't see you there, but have you seen my mom around."

"Kid, I've been with a lot of mares, but I'm still not going to claim you."

"I don't get it…"

This continued to happen until he reached the side of the road.

"Have you seen my mom?"

"No kid, it's not like I would care anyways." A stallion said, walking off.

Dust looked around and spotted a white stallion near a mare with a light gray and blue coat mix.

"Ummm, mister, do you know where my mom is?"

"No kid, I'm a busy stallion and I'm trying to let out some steam her, so why don't you-

"Affluent…this is no time to be angry." The mare said. "Hi there little one, my names Mystic Charade, what's your name?" She asked, with a motherly tone.

"My name's Dust Breaker, it's nice to meet you." He said, happily. "Do you know where my mother is?"

"No, sadly I don't, why don't we find her together." Charade said with a smile.

"This is ridiculous, you can't find somepony in Los Pegasus, just leave him!" Affluent shouted.

"Don't be so harsh, I'll be back soon." Charade said, lifting Dust to her back. "Now little one, tell me where she might be."

"Over there, perhaps…"

About two hours pass without success, until the two found something they weren't suppose to find.

"Hey look, that's my mom!"

"Where?" Charade shouted, excited.

"Well, it's a picture of her."

Charade walked up to the picture, shocked at what she saw.

"Oh no…"

"What wrong?"

Not wanting to tell a lie, she quickly took the picture off the wall and read it mentally.

_Salvia, wanted for treason, robbery, vandalism, piracy, racketeering, black market dealing, drug distributing, and possible murder. She tends to sell herself from time to time to other criminals. If spotted, contact authorities, she is not to be confronted directly. Reward, 100,000 bits._

'I thought I had it bad…' Charade thought to herself.

A large explosion was heard behind the two. Turning around abruptly she saw multiple, massed ponies run out of the bank, but the one that caught her eye was the mare herself. She had what looked to be several bags of bits on her body before she accidentally ran into Charade.

"Hi mommy! Why are you all dresses in black?"

Salvia starred into the eyes of her son, to ashamed of herself to even speak.

"THERE SHE IS, GET HER!" Several armored guards shouted, running towards her.

"Hey everypony, watch this!" Dust shouted.

"Wait Dust! Not so-

Charade was cut as Dust teleported all three of them back to his home. It took Salvia a few more moments before she came back to reality.

"What were you thinking Dust Breaker, you could have gotten hurt! Did I not tell you to stay home?!" She shouted, almost angered. "You should be lucky nopony tried to ponynap you, get inside now!"

"I-I was j-just trying to find you." Dust said, almost tearing up.

"I…*sigh* I'm sorry Dust…I'm sorry I can't be the mother I should be. Just please go inside."

Dust slowly opened the door and walked inside.

"You don't have to do all of this you know…" Charade said, unfolding the wanted poster.

"You don't know what I go through…"

"I know plenty, and I know that it's eating away at your heart. Like it does for me…"

"Look, I don't know who you are or what you want…but, thank you for finding my son."

"My name is Mystic Charade, but as I've said before, you don't have to go down this path." She said, giving her a card. "I do shows every week, it pays the bills, but you can come talk to me anytime. I'll help you, but you must trust me." She said leaving. "One more thing, your son has amazing skill with magic; you should push him to join the School for Gifted Unicorns in Canterlot."

"That…sounds like it could work actually." Salvia agreed.

"Take care…"

Charade threw a smoke bomb onto the floor before vanishing.

"It might just work Charade…It just might work.

* * *

Three years later…

"FOCUS DUST, LOOK DEEP WITHIN YOURSELF!" Salvia shouted from a distance.

"I'm trying!" Dust said, struggling.

"TRY HARDER; I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT!"

"ERRRR…BUDGE YOU STUPID BOULDER!"

A large stone the size of a large hill was slowly levitating before Dust…along with five others stones of the same size. He was working on levitating a sixth boulder.

"REMEMBER YOU'RE TRAINING DUST, WORK WITH THE STONES RATHER THEN AGAINST THEM!" Salvia advised.

"WHY WON'T IT MOVE?" Dust said, becoming angered. "MOVE YOU WORTHELSS PIECE OF GARBAGE!"

All six stones suddenly exploded, sending shards of stone all around the unicorn. As fast as he was, he wasn't successful in shielding himself from all the debris of rock.

"DUST!" Salvia shouted, running up to him.

"I'm fine mom…it's just a scratch." Dust said, flinching in pain.

"You're all cut up Dust! What did I tell you about using your anger?"

"Mom, most of my power comes through anger and pain…why can't I use it." Dust said, looking at his mother.

"It's not right Dust, and ponies can get easily corrupted when they rely on to much anger. You could also lose control, like you just did now."

"Ok mom…I'll try."

Salvia was used to healing up Dust in situations like this, learning healing spells in the process, but as his mother it was always hard to see her son get hurt.

"Aside from that, let's go into town and get some more magic tomes. You already mastered the ones I bought you." Salvia said, smiling.

"But aren't you still wanted, they'll spot you a mile away."

"Illusions my son, most ponies in Los Pegasus are weak minded from all the gambling. Us unicorns are blessed to have this wonderful gift of magic, and it is up to you to decide how to use it."

"Do…do you still do all those bad things that are on your poster."

"I have long given up that life, thanks to her."

"Mystic Charade? I always wondered how she's been doing. I only see her about once a month."

"She tends to stop by every now and then, wondering about you."

"She does?" Dust said, surprised. "I thought nopony cared for us."

"No everypony is uncaring. Thankfully, she has proven me wrong. Now let's get going shall we?"

The two unicorns took a slow and memorable walk down to the city. For once in Salvia's life, she was happy, happy to be alive, happy to be her and her son. Dust latched onto his mother, somehow feeling the emotions she was showing. It made him happy and it made his mom happy, they were finally free from their cure…

* * *

"Do you know why we are here Affluent…"

"WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!" Affluent yelled, bound to a chair and blindfolded.

"I want her location, where she lives, and you're going to tell me!"

"I don't know where she is, and why would I tell you even if I knew!"

"Because…your family depends on it…"

Several unicorns in animal fur threw forth three ponies, one mare, and two small children. They then removed the blindfold from Affluent's eye.

"Charade!"

"Be strong Affluent." Charade whispered, bringing the two small ponies closer to her.

"WHAT IS THIS ALL ABOUT, MONEY, LAND, CONTRACTS!" Affluent screamed.

"TELL ME WHERE SALVIA IS!"

"Why do you even care, she's-

"TELL ME!"

Affluent looked to Charade, who only shook her head no.

"Fine then…"

The pony nodded his head, signaling another unicorn to grab the small colt and slam him onto the table. The lead pony then removed a golden saber.

"If you will not tell us where she is…then perhaps this will serve as an example…"

"LEAVE MY SON ALONE!" Affluent shouted, gritting his teeth.

Charade attempted to grab the armed pony, but was only restrained by two other ponies.

"YOU CAN'T DO THIS, DO YOU HAVE NO HEART FOR CHILDREN!" She yelled.

"I have done it before, and I will again! TELL ME WHERE SHE IS!"

Affluent remained silent as a single tear rolled down his cheek, marking the first time he ever cried in his life.

"They…they life on the outskirts of the city…to the north…"

"NO, PLEASE DON'T DO IT!" Charade shouted, tears forming in her eyes.

"SHUTUP!" A pony shouted, smacking her in the face.

"Near the forest…in a small house hidden behind the trees…"

"There…now was that so bad…"

The all the ponies but the leader left the room.

"You have done a great service for the Unicorns of War clan." He said, tossing a bag of bit onto the table. "Remember this day, for it is the day that the great Olympus chose to spare your life…have a good day."

The pony slammed the door, leaving the four ponies in the room.

* * *

Two hours later.

"What do you mean you learned how to do everything in the book already?" Salvia said, looking at Dust.

"I did, why is that so hard to believe?"

"It's a master spell tomb, those take months to master, and you're telling me you mastered them all in an hour."

Dust nodded his head happily looking up at her.

"It looks like the weather team has scheduled to rain today."

"Well…would you look at that." Salvia said, looking up. "I guess it is."

"Let's get inside before it rains mom."

The two ponies were now within eye sight of the home. Dust ran along ahead until he stopped suddenly.

"What's the matter Dust, did something catch your eye?" Salvia asked.

"Mom…we're being watched…"

"What are you talking about?" Salvia asked, worried.

"We need to get out of here, before it's too late…"

"Dust, I don't understand…"

"They're here…"

Salvia looked around in horror to see about twelve ponies in animal skins appeared before her.

"It looks like you trained your son well Salvia…"

"Olympus, w-what are you doi-

She was suddenly pushed into the center of the circle of ponies. Meanwhile, Olympus grabbed Dust by his neck and restrained him, forcing him to watch.

"LET GO OF ME!" Dust yelled.

"Why, we just meet my son. Aren't you glad to see me?" He said, laughing evilly.

Dust shock in his place, unable to speak.

"LEAVE MY SON ALONE!" Salvia shouted before a large hoof knocked her to the floor.

"MOM!" Dust said, losing restraint.

"Oh look at this men, my son has a temper."

The ponies laughed, continuing to beat Salvia before her son's eyes.

"LEAVE MY MOM ALONE YOU MONSTERS!" Dust screamed.

As Dust tried to use his magic, a ring was placed on his horn that caused him to scream in pain.

"That ring with continue to give you pain until all your magic has been extinguished. Now, as for you Salvia, you will pay for your crimes against our clan, against out people."

"I HAVE DONE NOTHING WRONG, YET YOU CONTINUE TO PILLAGE EVERYTHING IN SIGHT FOR YOUR FALSE GLORY!

"ENOUGH!" Olympus yelled, nodding to his men. "I want to see this witch burn…

"CELESTIA WILL NEVER LET YOU GET AWAY WITH THIS, ONCE SHE FINDS OUT ABOUT THIS YOU WILL ALL BE DESTROYED!"

"She is of no concern for me, and soon you will just be dust in the wind."

Some of the ponies walked up to Salvia and poured a black liquid upon her body.

"You there…break her horn…"

"NO, STOP THIS PLEASE, I BEG OF YOU!" Salvia shouted.

The pony had no remorse as he smashed her horn with his hoof, uncaring as she screamed in pain.

"STOP HURTING MY MOM YOU ANIMALS!" Dust shouted in tears.

"No, you are going to watch as I finish this once and for all."

Olympus lit a torch before everyponys eyes.

"THERE IS NO ESCAPE FROM SIN SALVIA, AND FOR YOUR REBELLION AND DISOBEDIENCE TO OUR ORDER, YOU SHALL BURN AND PAY WITH YOUR LIFE!"

Salvia looked up at Dust, gazing into her sons eyes for the last time.

"No matter what happens Dust, remember that I love you!"

Olympus threw the torch…

"MMMMMMMMMMOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMM!" Dust screamed, watching the torch fall to the floor.

Dust wanted to look away, but the magic restraining him from Olympus was to strong. There he sat…watching the only thing that ever loved him practically parish before his weeping eyes.

"NNNOOOOOO, MOM PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME, MMMMMOOOOMMM!" Dust screeched.

Salvia continued to scream in pain before everypony around her, but all they did was stare, stare with blank expressions and cold hearts.

"This isn't enough, I want to make sure she dies…" Olympus said, picking up a large stone.

"NNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOO!" Dust bawled, not being able to take it anymore.

"Shut him up!" One of the guards yelled.

Dust looked at her mother one last time before a large stone hit the back of his head. Before he blacked out, he witnessed through watered eyes all twelve ponies throwing stones at her once beloved mother.

* * *

Dust Breaker woke up in the bottom of a cliff, hearing waves from the ocean crash upon the rocks. He was still in pain and his heart had been shattered. He looked to his left to see what was left of his mom. With aching pain and tears, he slowly crawled to her and sobbed next to her.

"Why did they do it…why mom? You where the only pony that loved me as your own. You where the only thing I had in this world, and they took it from me. I never did anything wrong mom, so why…why have I lived such a horrible life. I'm only ten mom, please, I'm not ready to life in this world yet, I still need you. Please wake me up mom; I don't want to be in this Nightmare anymore! I LOVE YOU, AND I CANT LIVE WITHOUT YOU MOM!"

Dust continued to sob heavily next to her mother.

"I was too weak to save you mom, I SHOULD HAVE SAVED YOU BUT I WAS TO WEAK!"

Dust grabbed a stop and started to beat and cut himself as if he had gone insane.

"I'M SUCH A PATHETIC DISGRACE TO YOU MOM, AND I CAN'T BE FORGIVEN FOR IT! I DON'T DESERVE TO BEAR THIS NAME, OR THIS LIFE."

He angled the stone to his throat, willing to do anything to stop his suffering, but suddenly he felt different. Something inside of him had snapped, as Dust's sadness was replaced with anger. His heart which was once pure had turned black and uncaring. His eye's dilated and became soulless as the stone he held was taken away from his throat and slowly started to sharpen itself.

"If my dad wants to come and take away my mom from me, then so be it…but in exchange I shall take away from his everything he had ever achieved. LET IT BE KNOWN THAT ON THIS DAY, I BECAME WHAT YOU HAD ALWAYS FEARED!"

Dust Breaker took the stone and levitated it near his face.

"I'm coming for you father…and I will destroy everything that stands in my way…"

* * *

"Why have you allowed them to come back here Affluent?" Charade asked, trying to recover.

"I've alerted the authorities, apparently they're from Germania and part of a dangerous clan that Celestia has been trying to capture for some time now." Affluent whispered.

"They came back smelling like smoke Affluent…I fear the worse. Poor thing, she didn't deserve what they did to her."

"I'll make sure that they're dealt with properly when the royal guards come capture them. For now though, their leader is sleeping in the guest room upstairs along with the others. After this is over, I'll take you to my home in Canterlot. I'm tired of all the madness here."

"Let's hope nopony else has to be harmed today."

* * *

"Are you sure you will be fine sire." A guard asked, overlooking his leader.

"Yes! Now get out of my room!" Olympus demanded.

The lights went out as the guard left, leaving him alone in the dark. He lay on the bed, over thinking what he had just did not too long ago.

"Tomorrow we shall raid this city of all its wealth. It is their punishment for harboring that harlot for so long."

He closed his eyes, putting his head down. Thunder cracked outside as lightning illuminated the room. Opening his eyes once again, he saw his son starring dead at him on his bed.

"WHAT THE-

Dust slammed his head down his magic and shoved a ring onto his horn.

"Remember this father; you used it not too long ago…" Dust said insanely with a demonic grin.

"I THOUGHT YOU WERE-

"Gone, erased, taken from life. No, not yet father, it doesn't end so easily."

"SIRE, WHAT'S GOING ON!" An awaken guard asked, opening the door behind Dust.

The small unicorn subconsciously slammed the door on the guards face and threw him back into the room, sealing the door with magic.

"GUARDS, MY SON IS-

Dust twisted his father's neck, making it pop suddenly.

"What's the matter father, not strong enough to face me alone?" Dust laughed. "You're pathetic."

Olympus quickly grabbed his son by his neck, attempting to chock him. Dust only laughed at his attempt as he used his magic to bind his hooves to the bed.

"You took away everything I loved father, now you will suffer for your mistake…"

Dust reached behind him and showed his dad the stone dagger he had created. Dust, smiling insanely, slowly dragged the knife to his chest.

"YOU'RE JUST A LOW CLASS WARRIOR, AN INSECT, A PAWN! YOU COULD NEVER SURPASS ME, I MADE SURE OF IT!" Olympus shouted.

"No dad, you are the pawn. What you did today was the first step to you and your clan's utter desolation. I will purge the world of your kind, starting with you…"

Dust brought the knife up and angled it to his heart.

"YOU'RE TOO WEAK TO HURT YOUR OWN FATHER, TO STUPID AND A DISGRACE! YOU WILL NEVER-"

"YOU'RE THE ONE THAT IS TOO WEAK! YOU WERE TOO MUCH OF A COWARD TO FACE YOUR MISTAKES!"

"What's going on in there?!" The guards yelled, trying to get in the door.

"I want to hear you suffer…JUST LIKE YOU DID WITH MY MOTHER!"

Dust took the dagger in his hooves and stood on his hind legs. Olympus starred at his son in complete shock and terror, desperately trying to move.

"BY MY HOOF, YOU WILL SUFFER FOR ETERNITY!"

Thunder cracked over the house, snuffling out any noise of screaming…and laughing.

Twenty minutes later.

"BUST THE DOOR DOWN NOW!" One of the guards ordered.

With their combined magic and strength, all eleven guards bashed down the door, what they saw frightened them to death. Dust Breaker, who used to be an innocent child, was now covered in blood and sitting on what was left of his father. In his hooves was a beating heart with the stone dagger jabbed into it.

"Well, it looks like my father's lackeys have finally joined the party."

All the stallions stared in horror, becoming white in the face.

"Don't worry; you will soon join him…

* * *

"What the heck is going on in there?" Affluent shouted.

"Affluent, stand back from the door." A royal guard said, bucking down the door.

Ten royal guards ran in the room, taking in the scene of twelve disembodied ponies and a bloodied up room.

"WHAT IN CELESTIA'S NAME JUST HAPPENED HERE?" Affluent screamed.

"Affluent?" Dust said, walking out slowly from the dark.

Some of the guards almost hurled at the scene.

"Did…did you do all of this kid?" Another guard asked.

"Yes…they took my mother away from me and they had to pay…"

"DUST!" Charade shouted, parting the crowd and walking to him slowly. "What…what happened to you?" She said, frightened.

Dust starred evilly into her eyes until suddenly, he started crying once again.

"I-I don't know what's happening to me! Make it stop, MAKE IT STOP!"

"This kid just…just…massacred twelve criminals…we have to restrain him."

"No, please, I just want a home, a place to be loved." Dust said, weeping through his hooves.

One of the guards reached out to grab the colt to restrain him, but his hoof was grabbed without warning.

"I WON'T LET YOU TAKE ME AWAY!"

Dust let out a large burst of magic that launched everypony against the wall. The guard that he was holding wasn't so lucky. Dust spun around and chucked him out the window into another building.

"Tranquilize him now, before it gets out of hoof!" Affluent ordered.

"Our magic can't restrain that kind of power!" The guard responded.

"WHAT KIND OF GUARDS ARE YOU!"

Dust continued to scream, letting out all of his rage and threatening to take down the entire house with him. Charade, on the other hoof, stood up and walked towards him.

"Dust, I know you're still in there somewhere! Please stop this before you hurt anypony else!"

Dust continued to rage, summoning a small tornado within the room that blew the roof off.

"I know how it feels to lose a loved one Dust Breaker, but you have to listen to us! We're trying to help you, and destroying everything won't ease the pain! This isn't what your mother wanted Dust; she wanted you to rise above this, to redeem her of her past! She wanted you to life a life free of pain and sorrow, to become what you always dreamed of."

The twister started to calm down as Dust slowly descended down to earth and into her hooves.

"Don't let that dream fade away, because she will always be with you."

Dust continued to cry as Charade sang a slow tone to him. Dust grabbed Charade's fur and held onto it, whipping away his tears before he fell asleep in her hooves.

"Guards, I'm giving this child over to you, give him to somepony that will take care of him. No child must go through what he's been through."

Unfortunately, that's not what the guards though. After telling their captain what they had witnessed form Dust, he was sentenced to life in prison in the most infamous and rundown prison in Equestria. It harbored the most notorious criminals in the entire land and worst of all; Celestia was unaware that it even existed…

* * *

Day of arrival.

Dust was bound in chains that was attached to about fifteen other stallions. Looking up, he noticed the sky was gray and full of clouds. A prison guard captain soon approached the group with no sigh of emotion in his face.

"Alright maggots! Welcome to prison Ponatraz, the most infamous prison in Equestria and perhaps the world. I will be guiding you through this living hell hole and showing you your rooms!" He said, walking down the line of Stallions, staring each one down. "Note that you were taken here on a boat, meaning you had to cross a lake to get here for those that are stupid. This puts you Stallions in a predicament, because we are five miles off shore, and last time I checked ponies can't swim very fast. None of you have any chance of escaping and that goes for unicorns and pegasi as well.

The weather here never changes because nopony, and I mean nopony knows about this place but the guards and prisoners here. Meaning nopony knows where you are and that nopony can bail you out. They say that Celestia knows and sees all…this prison is proof of that lie. Even though we love and adore our princess, we understand that not all ponies are willing to give up their evil spirits, something that she doesn't understand yet."

The captain noticed some of the stallions were staring down, looking at him with blank faces, or off in their own little world.

"I don't expect to be liked here or make friends with anypony." He said, popping into a prisoners face. "But I do expect to be treated with respect."

The captain stared down all the prisoners until he got to Dust, who was pint sized compared to all the other prisoners.

"What the…why is there a colt here!?" The captain asked.

"He's here because of twelve murders, assault on ten guards, and destruction of property." Another prison guard said.

"Twelve murders from a pint sized kid?! Didn't your mother teach you better?"

Dust's eyes dilated as his face twitched in anger.

"Don't, ever, talk about my mom again." Dust said, darkly.

"Ha, I've seen enough, lead them in."

The prison gates opened, revealing a court yard full of large ponies of all races and a pathway inside the building. All at once, it would seem as if everypony ran to the gates and made a large racket by yelling and shaking the metal gate. While some insulted the so called, "fresh meat", most concentrated on Dust as he continued to walk motionless to the entrance. Their comments where either wounding, vulgar, and even inappropriate and dirty. However, what they didn't know is that Dust was slowly feeding off of their words and using them as power to push him forward, and he loved it.

The doors slowly opened, as Dust and the others walked in to get checked in to their new lives. Dust looked around emotionless, watching some of the stallions having their manes shaved and unshackled from their bindings. He looked to his right to see pegasi having their wings clipped as they gave him a dark look.

"Keep it moving, you filth!" A guard ordered, pushing Dust forward.

Dust turned slowly, giving the guard the most frightening look he had ever seen.

"I suggest you keep one eye open at night…you might not wake up in the morning."

"Is that a threat!" the guard yelled.

"No…it's a fact."

"NEXT!" The admittance pony yelled in his ear.

Dust snapped out of his insane glare to the guard and stepped forward.

"What's your name?" The pony asked.

"Dust Breaker."

"Ah, your that colt everypony is blowing up about. To be honest I feel bad for you, your time here will not be a pleasant one, especially at the age of ten. My advice is to stay near the guards or set up a reputation here fast. These ponies are the roughest bunch in the entire county, and they will give you no mercy."

"I appreciate your advice, but my magic should be enough to defend myself."

"Well that's just it, you won't be able to." The pony said bleakly.

"What?" Dust said, angered.

"You're in prison kid; we have to give you a device to wear to prevent magical usage to prevent escape. I'm sorry, but you will be on the same level as the rest of the prisoners."

Dust sighed loudly, looking up to the pony.

"A unicorn being separated from magic is like a pegasus without wings or an earth pony without strength. Is there no other way?" He asked.

"According to your files, you lost control of your magic and almost destroyed a city. We can't take that risk here, so either comply or we will have to force you."

Dust closed his eyes and nodded.

"Do it…"

Two prison guards approached him and slid a cone like device around his horn. As the guards unbound Dust from his cuffs, the device constricted his horn like a vase, making him flinch in pain.

"Is it supposed to hurt?"

"For a bit yes…now go on in, your prison cell is in block D, second floor, number 296."

Dust stared forward, gazing down the hallway of cells and talking prisoners. Trying to make himself invisible from the crowd, he walked down the right side of the hall. He was successful for the most part until he reached the stairs.

"Hey newbie, last time I checked little kids weren't allowed to play with the big boys." A prisoner mocked.

"You can get hurt around these parts, shrimp." Another prisoner added.

"Because big boys tend to play very rough." a different prisoner said.

Dust paid no attention to his harassers until he was grabbed by his mane.

"Leaving so soon."

Dust was tossed across the floor where nine other stallions gather around.

"Do you know what we do to weakling around here?"

"Not to mention kids?"

"We show them who the boss is around here."

The stallions cracked their necks and pounded their hooves together. Dust looked around, un-amused until the group leader appeared before him.

"Some of us are here for vandalism and theft. Others are here for murder, but me…"

The stallion paced his hoof on Dust Breaker's head, slowly going to his ear and scratched behind it.

"I'm here for molestation…"

Dust became discussed, slapping his hoof away.

"If you touch me again, I will make you experience pain like never before." Dust whispered, causing all the stallions to laugh.

"I love it when they struggle…"

The leader of the group uppercut Dust into the wall, followed by a quick knee to his stomach. Dust gasped, struggling to breath as the stallion pined his neck to the wall.

"YOU'RE NOTHING HERE BUT A PLAY THING TO US! TO USE WHEN WE PLEASE!"

Dust started to shed tears as the stallion held him in place.

"Awww, is the little boy going to cry for his mommy." He laughed, followed by his other lackeys.

Dust's eyes shot open as he glared straight into the eyes of his aggressor. With one swift motion, he twisted the hoof of the stallion, making him cry out in agony.

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" Dust screamed, demanding all the attention of everypony in the prison.

Dust exploded in an aura of dark green magic as he launched the stallion into a nearby prison cell. The other nine prisoners stared angrily at Dust, ready to avenge their friend. Dust stood up on his hind-legs as his hooves were enveloped in pure black aura.

"What is this power?" Dust said, becoming frightened.

"GET HIM!" The group leader ordered.

Dust shot out his hooves towards the charging ponies, unknowing what would happen. To everyponies shock, a black wave shot out from his hooves, flying past the prisoners. Dust watched in horror as the nine ponies furs suddenly turned white as they collapsed onto the floor. Their eyes were now devoid of color and their veins had turned pure black.

"What did I just do?!" Dust asked, backing towards the wall.

Dust had no time to react as he was abruptly hit with volts of lightning by five prison guards. He only lasted for five seconds before he hit the floor unconscious.

"Everypony back to your cells!" The captain ordered.

"Sir, these ponies…they're gone." A guard said, feeling for a pulse.

The captain couldn't believe it as he stared around at all the damage.

"What kind of demon child are we dealing with…"

* * *

"Kid…hey kid wake up!" A pony whispered, talking through the cells window.

Dust slowly awoke, feeling cold in the dark room of his cell.

"What…what happened?" He asked, feeling a massive headache.

"I thought you would know?"

"Who the heck are you?"

"My name's Salvador, I'm the pony you talk to get things done. That pony that used to have a gang, thanks to you, is bucken furious."

"So he's ticked at me, like I care about somepony like him.

"No, that's his name here."

"What kind of stupid name is that?" Dust asked.

"It's more of an earned title. Ponies can earn titles here in prison, same goes for you."

"I'm fine with my own name thank you." Dust said, aggravated. "What's the real reason why you're here?"

"Straight to the point…good. It's your first day here and you have already made some enemies, but you can also make some friends."

"I've been by myself for over two months now, what makes you think I need them, much less can even trust them."

"You got lucky with that magical outburst, but what guaranty do you have that it will always save you? You're magic is repressed by that thing on your horn and rumors are that the guards are going to make devices for your hooves. You will technically be powerless against everypony unless you're protected by us. You're the top dog in this place right now and if ponies find out your powerless…let's just say there will be a grave waiting for you."

Dust sat in silence, thinking about the offer.

"You have till tomorrow to decide, but just remember that the strong thrive here. Anypony that's weak either becomes a pawn or kicks the bucket…so chose wisely, I know you will."

Salvador left the cell, leaving Dust alone in his dark confinement.

* * *

"Captain, I'm taking my break." The guard from the admittance table said.

"Sure it's almost mid-night anyways, just go to the barracks, your shift is over." The captain told.

"Alright, good night sir."

The guard exited the prison and started to walk down the pathway to the barracks. Making sure nopony was watching, he took out a small bottle of liquor and drank some. As he put the cork back on the bottle, he noticed that thick fog had formed around him. He was already too tired to care, so he continued on down the path. Rubbing his eyes sheepishly, he noticed a dark but small figure only about ten feet away.

"What the-

A large rock collided with the guard, making him fall to the floor on his back. As he struggled to get up, a dark green hoof was placed onto his chest.

"YOU!" The guard shouted, almost panicking.

The figures other hoof was shrouded by black aura as he brought it above his chest.

"Sweet dreams…"

A high pitched scream rang throughout the night sky, startling everypony on the entire island. The guards thought none of it as they continued on with their night. As the next day dawned, a body was found in a red pool of blood and water with his heart missing. The news quickly spread throughout the prison, sprouting rumors and theories. Almost everpony was shocked by the news, wondering who or what could have done the act. Everypony except Dust, who always sat in a corner of the prison cell with a sadistic smile…, laughing.


	28. Chapter 16 D part 2

**Well, you guys have finally caught up to where i am in the fic. Chapter 16 E is almost done, but the next couple of chapters are REALLY important and they involve a certain character who hasn't been seen in the fic for a while. Anyways, Chapter 16 F (i know, they letter annoy me to) is a four parter because its just so long. In fact, Chapter 16 D was only suppose to only 12,000 words...yeah...i even had to cut out things to make it shorter because the words just keep on going...and going...and going...and going...**

Chapter 16 D: Tainted and desecrated (part two of two)

Three years pass…

"Happy birthday Dust Breaker!"

Dust was sitting at a table, wearing a ten foot wide sombrero as practically every prisoner wished him happy birthday. Even though this was a surprise to him, he showed no emotion and sat their un-amused.

"You're officially a teenager Dust, being thirteen is no small privilege." Salvador said, smirking.

"Yeah, at least show some emotion." One of the prisoners said.

"Be proud of yourself, aside from Salvador you're on the top of the food chain here." Another pony added.

"Feared and respected my friend, it's truly a unique gift." Salvador said, sitting down at the table.

Dust sighed, looking down at the table.

"It's been three long years…and I still miss her." Dust whispered.

There was an awkward pause between the prisoners around him. Meanwhile, the others were busy eating or enjoying their time. After all, it was lunch hour.

"Sooooo…how many prisoners and guards have you 'taken care of?" One of the prisoners asked, changing the subject

"I've lost track after about…100 I think."

"Dear Celestia, I still can't believe the guards haven't caught you."

"Even if they did, who would want to confront me about it?" Dust asked.

"True, but you alone have cut the population here in half. The guards are wetting themselves at the scenes you've left behind."

"Good, soon it will be time to unleash my plan."

"And what would that be?" Salvador asked.

"Prison break…"

All the prisoners gasped.

"That's impossible; nopony has ever escaped this place."

"It's a five mile swim to shore with a rough tide."

"Not to mention 24/7 watch over cells and roll call."

"There's always a first time for everything." Dust said, smirking. "But for now, we must acquire the trust and respect of all the prisoners. When that is done, I will need constant training in hoof-to-hoof combat; the training I get now is not enough."

"Not enough?" A confused pony asked. "You're one of the strongest ponies in here; you have learned almost everything there is to know."

"It's still not enough!" Dust shouted, slamming his hooves on the table. "I need to be the strongest pony here in order for this to work. With my strength established, I can pass on what I know to the others, making everypony an equal threat. Meanwhile, I can practice using magic through my hooves as I teach the unicorns how to properly use it and execute this discovery."

"There is only a hoof full of unicorns here; most of them never get captured by the guard."

"True, but no matter how strong or fast you are, magic can and will have an advantage over you. My gift of power doesn't come from pushups and sit-ups alone you know."

"So what's the first step?" Salvador asked.

"I finish off the last opponent that has ever tried to oppose me. Bucken furious."

"So that's why you kept him alive."

"Exactly, and old Buck is slowly losing his mind, thinking I'm going to strike him down in his sleep. No, what I have planned for him is humiliation and submission, for I plan on defeating him in front of everypony so that all will know who truly is to be feared. All those that resist my influence will be dealt with properly and disgracefully by me alone."

"When will this start?" Salvador asked.

"Now…"

Dust removed the sombrero from his head and stood on the table. With one swift motion, he bucked a food tray across the room.

"OH, THAT IS IT YOU LITTLE PUNK!" Buck screamed, standing from the table covered in mashed potatoes. "I'VE DELT WITH YOUR &$^ FOR FAR TOO LONG, NOW IT'S TIME FOR PAPA TO BEAT YOUR FLANK TILL ITS RED!"

"And how are you going to do that from way over there?" Dust said, smirking.

Buck flipped the table and pointed his hoof at Dust.

"I WANT THIS MEAT BAG MINCED!"

Several stallions around Buck slowly started to walk towards Dust. Unfortunate for him, more than triple that number jumped in front of the group to defend Dust.

"Face it Bucky, I have four times the number of ponies you have and yet you still try to fight me. You still even have to tell your lackeys what to do and when to do it, but my men act on their own because they know better. It's amazing how your men still even listen to a coward like you when they're clearly afraid of me. Afraid of a thirteen year old colt that will soon have you begging for your life."

"SHUT YOUR &*& %# MOUTH!"

"Make me, you discussing freak, or are you going to tell your lackeys to do it for you?"

Buck stared angrily at Dust for a long moment before speaking again.

"Three o'clock, court yard, just you and me with everypony watching."

"Now we're getting somewhere…I accept your death wish." Dust said, continuing to smirk.

"Likewise…"

Everything calmed down after several seconds, as if nothing had happened.

"That my friends, was way too easy…"

* * *

The cells automatically opened, letting all the prisoners out for break. Conveniently enough, the time was exactly three.

"This is it Dust, the moment of truth." Salvador said, walking beside him.

"Did you convince the guards of our plan?" Dust asked.

"Of course, the guards will have no supervision over what happens in the recreation yard, you are free to do whatever you please."

"Yeah, but what if Buck breaks the rules?" A prisoner asked.

"Pfff, I can handle him and his entire posy if need be. In fact, when Buck or his lackeys try anything stupid, have our men swarm the others. It will give them something to do."

"What do you mean, 'when?"

"It's obvious he will break the rules, because I'm going to make him. Buck is the ultimate example of why nopony should go against my will."

The door swung open, letting the dim atmosphere of the gray sky enter the building. There was a mix of cheering and booing as Dust and his friends stepped down the steps and into the recreation yard. Ahead of him was Buck surrounded by a circle of ponies, ready to jump in at any moment.

"Are you ready Dust Breaker?" Buck said, cracking his neck over the cheering. "I've been waiting to make you my personal play thing ever since you made a fool of me three years ago."

"Is that all you think about Buck, I guess I shouldn't be surprised from a pedofilly." Dust countered.

"Fool, this isn't about satisfaction, this is about setting this rivalry once and for all. To see who truly is the top dog in Ponatraz."

"Then bring it on!" Dust shouted.

"I'm going to enjoy this…"

Buck ran forward and punched Dust across the muzzle and then jabbed him into the chest. Without wasting time, he shot his hoof upward into Dust's jaw, making him skid across the dirt. Buck laughed as he leaped into the air and elbowed Dust into the stomach and continued to beat the colt into the ground. Meanwhile, Salvador and his pose where having mixed feelings as to what was going on.

'What are you doing Dust, you should know better than this.' Salvador though, watching his young friend being pulverized.

Buck spat into Dust's face as he picked him up by his neck.

"So, the great Dust Breaker is just all bark and no bit. It's a wonder how you even got away with so many murders without them taking you down."

Dust slowly looked up at Buck with a wicked smile and chuckled softly, making Buck rethink his claim.

"Just as I though, you're nothing to me now, all your punches, all your techniques…worthless and painless to me."

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU WORTHLESS WASTE OF TRASH?!"

"The fool shouts for the world to hear, but does not listen…you've lost and you know it."

"YOU HAVEN'T EVEN LAID A HOOF ON ME, AND YOU WANT TO SAY THAT I'VE LOST! YOU'RE JUST AFRAID, A COWARD WITH NO STRENTH!"

"Then let this be a lesson to you and to everyone…"

Dust flip kicked into Buck's jaw, making him stumble back and drop him. Dust took his hoof and swung it mere inches from the ground before jabbing his hoof right into Buck's stomach. Everypony watched in amazement as Buck coughed out saliva and bared a look of extreme anguish on his face as he fell to his knees. Dust gave no remorse as he flipped over the pony and tornado kicked him into the crowd of ponies. Buck, still dazed, couldn't comprehend what the heck just happened.

"Am I going too fast for you, here, let me slow it down for you." Dust mocked.

"Why you little-

Dust ran under the stallion before he could finish and bucked his legs. Buck shouted loudly as his hind-legs bucked from the pain and landed face first into the dirt. Dust slid down the pony's back and grabbed him by the back of his head, slamming it rapidity into the ground.

"Do you understand now Buck." Dust said, whispering into his ear. "You're just a tool, a pawn for my uprising. Soon everypony will be under my control and your influence over them will be erased."

Dust flipped over him and lifted his face to stare straight into his eyes. To Buck, the noise around him became muffled and barely audible as everypony became a blur except Dust.

"You made the mistake of becoming my enemy on that fateful day. Thinking you could just take advantage of me and use me to satisfy your wants and desires, thinking that I was weak to oppose you and your control. Well no more…no more will I be forced to live under life's pain and brutality, for I have endured the torture and came out victorious. This is why I spared your miserable life, but now your usefulness has come to an end…"

Buck's eyes widened, knowing that his life could possibly end at any given moment as Dust cocked his hoof back.

"Goodbye Buck, maybe your value in life can be as equally as important in death."

"NO!"

Buck out of panic, punched Dust in the face, making him back up. The stallion got up rapidly and removed a concealed shiv within his prison clothing.

"I-I-I won't let you kill me!" Buck shouted in terror.

"Maybe that's true, but that little act you just did broke the rules…get him!"

All the stallions that supported Dust charged forward and tackled anypony on the opposite team, resulting in a large prison brawl and leaving Dust and Buck in the middle of the chaos. Buck launched forward, attempting to stab the young colt and save his life. To his shock, Dust easily dodged and swayed out of every swing, making him panic even more.

"FIGHT ME!" Buck screamed.

Dust grabbed and caught Buck's hoof after he screamed these words. With a slight motion from his hoof, Dust broke Buck's fore-leg, causing him to let go of the weapon and scream in pain. Dust smirked as he kicked Buck onto his back and grabbed the shiv. As the fight died down around him, Dust stood on Buck's stomach and held the weapon above his chest.

"Please…I don't want to die." Buck said, shedding tears.

"Tears do not solve problems, only strength and power can!"

Everypony stared at the scene, waiting for the job to be finished.

"I HAVE LEAREND THAT THERE IS NO REMORSE FOR OUR KIND, NO PITTY, NO SORROW, AND NO FORGIVENESS TO THOSE THAT DO IT!" Dust said, lifting the dagger above his head. "AND WITH THIS, I RISE…AND FREE. MY. TORMENT!"

"STOP!" A voice shouted, forcing Dust to stop mid-stab.

Time around Dust stopped as beam of light formed around him.

"Why can't I move?!" Dust yelled, trying to finish what he started.

"What happened to you? You used to be full of life and happiness, but now you take out your pain on innocent ponies."

"SHOW YOURSELF YOU COWARD, SO THAT I MAY VANQUISH YOU BACK FROM WHERE YOU CAME!"

The sky opened up, revealing the sun to Dust for the first time in over three years. In a burst of light, a mare in white robes descended down and landed a few feet from him.

"Is that what you really feel…my son."

"Mom…" Dust whispered, forcing his eyes to water and his mouth to quiver.

"Why are you hurting others, why are you letting the ponies that hurt you turn you into a monster?" Salvia asked, showing sadness for her son.

"They…they hurt you mom…they deserve everything I give them because they're heartless monsters that took away my happiness and love! I can't forgive ponies with this hatred in their heart! THEY TOOK THE ONLY THING I LOVE AWAY FROM ME!" Dust screamed, shaking the dagger in his hooves.

"But you became exactly what they are Dust, you became exactly what you hated."

"No…no…I did this all for you, mom."

"This isn't what I wanted Dust, I didn't want you to fall and follow the same path I took. I wanted you to rise above our pain and become something great in this merciless world, not be a part of it."

"B-but they to you away from me…"

Salvia walked up to her son and hugged him tightly.

"You must let go of the past Dust, and look to the future. What has been done cannot be undone for this is the curse of fate, but you can't let it take you down with it."

Dust let his tears fall down his face, shivering in his mothers hooves.

"I'm sorry…I'm so sorry mom…that I couldn't save you."

"Don't blame yourself Dust, for they could never take my spirit away from you." Salvia said, hugging her son like he was newly born. "And I will never leave you, because you're my little ball of sunshine."

Dust started to cry more, dropping his head down to the ground.

"My heart still cries out for you, mom. Is there no cure for this pain, for this lose?" Dust asked.

"Forgiveness and love, Dust. They are the keys to undo the pain in your heart…and the keys to set you free…"

Time resumed once again, leaving Dust with a decision to make that would affect his life for years to come. Looking at Buck, he lifted the shiv above his head and thrust…

Everypony gasped.

"It is finished…"

Buck opened his eyes and found that the shiv was only an inch away from his head.

"I'm done with this senseless violence, and you should do the same. We should all do the same!" Dust shouted, looking at everypony. "We should unite as one group, not be divided into many, for a house that is divided cannot stand! Alone we are nothing, but together…together we shall see the light of day once more and forever be free from this prison!"

All the prisoners were confused by this sudden change in their leader until Salvador started to clap his hooves. Soon, everypony was clapping and cheering, for a new hope had dawned over the prisoners. A hope of liberty and freedom…

Three years pass…

"I'll see you on the other side my friend." Salvador said, shaking Dust's hoof.

"With any luck, we will all be on the other side."

"I'll have the boat ready in five days. If you make it, you will have finally passed and mastered my training."

"Hehe, you're crazy old man." Dust said, chuckling happily.

"Ok, move it along!" The captain said, pushing Salvador out the door.

Dust watched from a distance his old friend embarking on the very same boat that took him here six years ago. The ferry was now a symbol of freedom as it slowly vanished in the distant fog.

"I won't let you down."

It was indeed a long five days for the prisoners, but time always moves forward no matter what path live takes. The first two days involved Dust secretly training the unicorns to manipulate their magic through their hooves. A long and frustrating process, but it worked out in the end. Day three and half of day four were used to teach all the prisoners to fight with precision rather than brute strength alone. They were nowhere good as Dust was, but at least this knowledge would increase their chances in a total prison break. Lastly, the rest of day four was used to explain the plan to every prisoner. The prison only had eight blocks going from A-H so it wasn't very big, but it had lots of security, gates and guards, making escape seem like a fantasy…until now.

Celestia's sun, still being blocked by the cloudy weather, seemed brighter on day five, as if the princess herself knew that history was about to be made.

"OK BOTTOM FEEDERS, WAKE UP, IT'S TIME FOR BREAKFAST AND ROLE CALL!" The captain shouted from a speaker box.

All the prisoners in block C-D drooped out of their cells and slowly walked over to a nearby check in station. Everything went well until some news reached the lieutenant.

"Sir, some of the prisoners in the other blocks are getting heated up." A guard whispered.

"What do you mean, 'heated up'?" The lieutenant asked.

"As in, some hooves are about to be thrown."

"Well control the situation rookie, I can't have-

"WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM?" A prisoner yelled, drawing everyponies attention.

"My problem?! You're the one shoving in line you big balloted buffoon!"

"Are you kidding me, you're the one that keeps slapping me with your overgrown tail."

"Maybe if your muzzle wasn't so blocky, you wouldn't be hit by it you fat faced cow!"

The prisoner grabbed the insulting pony and slammed him into a nearby wall.

"I am sick and tired of you always insulting me with your stupid comments, you flat-footed, hoof licker."

"Hey, drop it or things are about to get messy for you!" a new prisoner threatened.

"If you do that, then I'm going after you first bud!" Another prisoner yelled, butting in.

More prisoners started to join in on this, "brawl of words" until everypony in the block was yelling at each other.

"Captain, all the prisoners are getting out of control!" The lieutenant shouted into a reviver.

"I can hear that lieutenant; give the guards the orders to control this outbreak."

"But sir-

"DO IT LIEUTENANT!"

The pony hesitated, becoming nervous in the situation. The lieutenant gulped loudly, shutting his eyes and pressing the button on the wall.

"All guards, report to the prison, we have a fight going on here that needs to be quelled ASAP!"

It took the guards no time at all to reach the prison, but by the time they got there, the prisoners had broken out into a riot.

"What in Celestia's holy sun is going on here?!" A sergeant asked, trying to hide his surprise.

"I don't know, they just started fighting each other, along with all the other cell blocks." A guard informed, raising his voice about the fight.

"I bet that kid is behind this." The captain said, appearing from nowhere.

Both the ponies saluted the captain.

"Sorry sir, we didn't see you there." The sergeant apologized.

"Never mind the formalities, we have a riot on our hooves and it needs to be stopped. Did you bring the equipment?"

"Of course sir…"

The sergeant, followed by the rest of the reinforcement, removed metal batons from their armored plaiting.

"Good…open the gate." The lieutenant ordered.

The magnetic gates slid open as guards filed in one-by-one. Their movements were organized and brutal, fast and merciless as they standing in a horizontal line, beating anything within range. The guards had pushed themselves halfway into the prison until the prisoners stopped fighting and suddenly organized themselves in a group.

"NOW!"

To the guard's amazement and shock, the prisoners suddenly charged forward and tackled the group, disorganizing their line of defense. Some of the prisoners even managed to snatch some of their batons and use it against them during the fight.

"WE'VE BEEN DECEIVED, IT'S A PRISON BREAK!" The lieutenant screamed.

The captain looked dead into the crowd of prisoners and soon spotted his target. A medium sized, dark green stallion abruptly launched out of the crowd and jumped off one of the guard's riot shields. With ease, the colt landed on the second floor and made a break for the exit.

"CLOSE THE GATE NOW!" The captain ordered.

"But sir there's still-

The captain grabbed the guard and tossed him aside. With a swift motion, he bucked the red button to close the gate. The young stallion sprinted as fast as he could when he saw the gate rapidly closing. It was now all or nothing as the pony jumped onto the railing and launched off towards the gate's closing entrance. To the guard's horror, the pony shot through the entrance by just a hair on his tail just as it closed. The pony hit the ground hard and rolled several times before bucking the two unlucky guards across the floor.

"TAKE HIM DOWN!" The captain shouted, backing up from the scene.

The pony leaped to the left and grabbed the Lieutenant and slowly backed up to the gates switch.

"Back off, or he gets it." The pony threatened.

"Rust…that's your name right, look, this doesn't have to-

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH!" Dust Breaker yelled. "For six years I have lived in this accursed house of agony and I want out!"

"It doesn't work like that kid; you're the one that decided to break our laws."

"Do your laws justify those that did what they had to?! Forgive those that endured pain beyond this physical world. I watched my mom die before my eyes, burn for her mistakes that she tried to correct, and yet only one cared! ONLY ONE CARED FOR MY LIFE!"

"Words aren't going to fix your problems kid, action will!"

"Which is exactly what I'm going to do."

Dust trusted his head into the gates switch, making the gates slide open with a loud buzzing of the alarm. Pushing the hostage pony forward, he shot a small ball of magic from his hooves that sent him barreling into the crowd. Spinning around, he kicked the red button off of the gate, preventing any means of closing it again.

"Today marks the beginning of a new life…a life free from you."

"Take him down." The captain ordered.

All the guards removed batons from their armor as they slowly started to surround the young stallion. Then, all at once, they ran forward and sung their batons. Dust jumped into the air and dashed to the left, quickly opening the other gates that held his friends. With all the gates opened and broken, Dust turned to the guards as the prisoners lined up behind him.

"NOW WE FIGHT FOR OUR FREEDOM!"

Dust dashed forward, quickly followed by his allies as they slowly but surely defeated every guard. As Dust trusted a guard's face into the floor, he caught the captain making a break for the upper floor, where the control room was.

"Buck, you take charge, I'm going to finish this once and for all!"

Dust chased after the captain as he ran up the stairs and turned a corner. As Dust reached the second floor, a hoof decked him across the face, sending him back down the steps. He looked up just in time to see two guards sliding down the stairs railings to fight him. Dust jumped up into the air just as the guards smashed into the wall and kicked both of them in the helmets, making him flinch in pain. With the guards out, he ran up the stairs once again, unfortunately, the captain was nowhere in sight. Instead, all he saw was hallways filled with armored ponies with batons.

Three guards swung at Dust, missing by just a hair as he dodged the first two and grabbed the third baton. Twisting the baton, he threw the guard down the stairs and slammed the other two into the wall with magic. The guards stood their un-amused as they watched the sixteen year old pony spin the baton like a small pen.

"Fight me…and I promise you will have pain without end." He said, taking the baton into his mouth.

The baton glowed dark green as he galloped into the crowd, taking down five guards instantly. While fighting guard's hoof-to-hoof, he would painfully block baton swings with his own, but this was the least of his worries. Right now, he had to find the control room to open the main door to freedom and finally free his horn from its entrapped confinement. Yes, Dust could cast magic from his hooves, but it wasn't perfected and without his horn as a reviver he would quickly run out of power. Smashing the last guard upon the head with his baton, he ran forward and scaled the side of the wall.

Dust jumped from wall to wall as he magically struck ponies with the baton, almost using it like a boomerang. This continued until he got to the end of the crowd and landed behind them. Spinning around quickly, he slammed his hooves together and fired a vortex of magic that blasted the guards away from him and into the wall. Dust dropped the baton and blasted the metal door down with the last of his magic. Walking inside the dark room, he discovered to his content that it was indeed the control room.

'Now I just have to find the switch to the door.' Dust though, running up to the levers.

He looked around frantically, pressing random buttons and throwing around random files. He was about to throw another file across the room until his very name caught his eye on the file. Being surprised, he opened the file.

_Dust Breaker, code name…Desolent. _

_Age: sixteen. _

_Family: diseased._

_Background: Born in the country of Germania and fled to Equestria. Lived in the outskirts of Los Pegasus in a low-class society before being found guilty of twelve murders. Responsible for nine conformed deaths in prison and possibly responsible for many more. If theories are true, he has committed over 137 murders with his expert knowledge of the dark arts and may have contact with necromantic demons. If these are true, this kid could be the next King Sombra and destroy all of Equestria if he is not stopped while he is still in confinement. We can't let Celestia know about him; otherwise she might try to investigate personally, endangering herself and Equestria. _

_Solution: I do not believe in forgiveness for ponies like him. He is to be burned at the stake along with his past. Ponies like these can't live among our society and I hope that Celestia will understand my decision one day. May Celestia be with us all…_

Dust shook in his place as he frantically flipped through the pages and threw it across the room.

"They wanted to…no…I'm not this pony anymore…"

"So I see that my theory was true after all."

Dust turned around to see the captain, smirking at him with a cruel smile.

"You're a demon, a spawn from the depts itself, and it is my job as captain to see that you don't become a terrorist to our home!"

Dust looked to the side, seeing a large red button. Taking a leap of faith, he pushed the button with all his strength. He looked up with a victorious smile.

"It's finally over…"

The captain laughed almost evilly as he stepped to the side, revealing a switch.

"This is the switch to free everyone…the button you just pressed is a last resort method, in case of an invasion. Which means that at any moment, the barrels filled with fertilizer inside the walls will be lit, sending this island sky high. If that's not enough, the walls are also filled with hydrogen and lots of it. Face it Desolent, you just commented mass genocide with a press of a button, and I'm going to make sure you go down with the ship."

"Don't you dare, CALL ME BY THAT NAME AGAIN!"

Dust screeched to the top of his lungs as he tackled the captain into the wall. Dust swung his hoof to deliver an uppercut to the captain, but the captain swayed to the side, making the angered pony hit the release switch. The captain gave and angered look as he swung at Dust with a curve punch. Dust grabbed the ponies hoof and flung him over the table and into the control. The captain looked up to see Dust grab the release lever and snap it off of its hinge.

"I am not the pony you claim me to be anymore."

"You're only convincing yourself!"

The captain leaped into the air and tackled Dust to the ground. Just as he was about to punch Dust while he was down, he flipped the captain over his head and into a locker. A loud crash was heard behind Dust as he stood to his hooves quickly and jumped over the table. The captain recovered and stood onto his hooves, giving Dust a stare down. The red light flicked in the dark room, covering the two ponies in a dark red tint of light as the alarm continued to buzz in their ears.

"Ponies can change captain, why can't you see this!"

"Mainly because you're trying to escape your sentence."

"I read the files; it said I was imprisoned here by a court decision, not because of an action!"

"That mare had no idea what you were becoming, if she was to see you now, she would want you eradicated."

"That mare, is named Mystic Charade…and she is the closest pony I have to my mother. She gave your men the order to have me out in a caring home, and what do you do? YOU CAST ME INTO THIS PRISON!"

"I WON'T LET YOU DESTROY EQUESTRIA!"

"AND I WON'T LET YOU CONTINUE THIS TORMENT!"

A large explosion was heard behind Dust. Turning around, he witness the entire prison suddenly engulfed in a huge ball of fire.

"Captain, stop this fighting or your own men will be taken in the fire of your own insane plan!" Dust shouted.

"A SMALL PRICE TO PAY TO FINALLY STOP YOU'RE REIGN OF TERROR!"

The captain leaped over the table and tackled Dust through the glass window, sending the two falling into the rising inferno. Dust managed to push the captain off of him before he landed onto the floor two stories below. The captain wasn't too fortunate either as he landed right beside him onto the broken glass. The two ponies stood back on their hooves as the raging flames continued to rise. Another explosion was heard, this time knocking out the lights in the prison and giving the two ponies a black color to their coats.

"Fight me, come on, release that hidden power you keep deep inside you." The captain yelled.

"Enough of this; give me the key to free my magic so I can save these men." Dust pleaded.

"You're going to have to take it out of my cold dead hooves!"

The captain gave a wicked smile as he jangled the keys before Dust as if to taunt him.

"Come on Desolent…kill me, take your freedom and prove you are just as wicked as they say."

"Have you become so obsess with this goal that you're willing to waste your life?!"

"If you will not release your power…THEN I WILL!"

The captain leaped forward and punched Dust several times across the face and chest. With a quick spin, he kicked Dust against a cell that was enveloped in fire. The captain ran forward and slammed his elbow into the stallion's stomach forcing him to gasp. Dust saw a faint blur before the captain grabbed his head and kneed him right into his muzzle and thrown to the side. Dust glared up at the captain with a bloody muzzle before he back-flipped into the blazing fire and dense smoke.

"YOU CAN'T RUN FROM YOUR FATE BOY!" The captain screamed insanely, dashing into the fire.

As soon as the captain's vision readjusted, he was punched to the floor and thrown into a table, shattering it to pieces. The captain looked up at the Dust, who was having trouble breathing due to the smoke.

"Stop this madness now!" Dust screamed.

"NOT UNTIL YOU'RE DESTROYED!" The captain shouted, picking up a flaming metal bar.

Dust gazed into the eyes of the pony, only seeing rage and determination to finish him off. A look his father gave him just before he killed his mother…and it tore him apart inside of him. While Dust was being bombarded by the memories of his past, the captain screamed insanely and charged. Dust stood freighted as the captain swung the bar and hit his muzzle, causing blood to spill out from the hit. The captain continued to beat the pony until the last blow hit his horn, sending Dust to the floor in pain. Showing no remorse, the captain slid the bar under Dust's neck, applied his hoof to the back of his head, and lifted. Dust struggled to breathe as his wind pipe was forcibly sealed off from the pressure.

"YOU'RE NOTHING, NOTHING IN THIS WORLD BUT A FAILURE, A THREAT TO OUR WAY OF LIFE! YOU HAD NO MEANING, NO POURPOSE TO OUR WORLD, JUST ANOTHER LOW-CLASS FOOL THAT THOUGH HE COULD ACOMPLISH SOMETHING FROM HIS MISERABLE LIFE! WELL IT'S TIME FOR IT TO END, TIME FOR ME TO PUT AN STOP YOUR DREAM, TO YOUR GOAL, TO YOUR EXISTANCE AND LIFE! JUST AS IT SHOULD HAVE SIX YEARS AGO!"

Dust's vision started to fade as he slowly lost oxygen to his lungs.

"Get up…you're not alone in this." A soft voice said in his ear.

Dust reopened his eyes, knowing exactly who it was.

"This is your chance to prove your father and everypony wrong about you, a chance to finally free yourself of this curse and pain. Together, we will triumph over this evil and free everypony that share our pain and our sorrow."

Salvia appeared as a faint ghost before her son and extended her hoof.

"I might have failed you in life, but I will not make that same mistake in death."

Salvia placed her hoof on Dust's head.

"For I will always be with you…

Dust's fur exploded in a bright white light as the captain suddenly flew off of him. The captain weakly stood back up to see Dust enveloped in his usual dark green magic.

"You have no more control over me." Dust said, as the casing around his horn shattered into pieces.

The captain screamed as he grabbed the bar and charged forward to impale the unicorn. Dust showed no emotion as he extended his hoof toward the captain.

"Your hold over me, is now broken."

Dust shot out a green ball of magic that threw the captain into the wall behind him. The unicorn then stood on his hind hooves and sensed out all the unconscious guards as his eyes glowed white.

"Be free…"

From the outside, it looked like the prison glowed bright white before it exploded violently. To this day, the prisoners have no idea whatever happened to Dust or the others. Buck knew he had survived though, because he knew that a kid with that kind of will and strength would not be so easily defeated…and because the captains keys magically appeared in his pocket.

A few seconds earlier…

"Where the heck is he?" Salvador asked, watching the island intently with binoculars.

Salvador watched in shock as the prison suddenly exploded in a fire and dropped the binoculars he was holding. Reaching to pick them up, he noticed a green hoof pick it up for him.

"How long where you waiting?" Dust asked, smirking.

"You made quite an exit there kid, I'm impressed."

"It…it was fun…"

Dust shut his eyes and collapsed onto the ground, being completely exhausted. Salvador couldn't blame him though, after all, he was still only a kid. That night, Dust was finally happy with where he was. He was free at last, free from pain and anguish, free of sadness and depression. It was a new start to his life…one that he wasn't about to give up.

One day later…

"Well, here we are Dust…Canterlot, the royal capital of Equestria." Salvador declared.

Dust was breath taken by the sight.

"It's…so beautiful."

"This is as far as I can take you on boat because you're going to have to walk all the way up. Good luck out there Dust; you're now a free stallion."

"Thank you…for everything you've done for me."

Salvador nodded before setting sail and taking off. He waved one last time to Dust before he vanished in the dense fog.

"This is a new start Dust; try not to mess this up…

After the climb up the mountain on hoof, young stallion finally reached his destination. Dust couldn't help but wander the streets, admiring the large city and vibrant colors. The ponies where not like the gamblers he meet in Los Pegasus, they were more civilized and wore high-class clothing. The buildings where even taller here than anyplace he had ever seen, making the unicorn seem small and helpless. Everything was just bigger-

"Hey, watch where you're going!" A stuck up pony yelled. "You'll get my suit dirty with your filth."

Even the attitudes…

"I'm sorry sir, but do you know where I can find a map for-

"No, and next time, keep your filth back at home." The pony snapped, cutting of Dust.

The pony stuck his nose up and walked away, but by doing so he bumped into a ladder. Dust watched in amusement as purple paint spilled all over the ponies coat and suit.

"AAhhhhhh! Look at what you made me do you ungrateful pig." He screamed in anger, drawing multiple ponies to the scene.

"That's funny, because all I did was stand here." Dust said, still chuckling.

"You're going to pay for this kid!"

"Calm your horses now, just give me a moment."

The ponies around Dust where amazed when he sucked the paint from the suit and left it sparkling clean. Not wanting the paint to go to waste, he turned to the unfinished house and flung the paint onto it, finishing a job that would have taken hours to complete.

"Well that's new." A pony said astounded.

"Spectacular performance."

"Incredible artisanship."

Compliments flooded Dust Breakers ears, making him feel awkward.

"He must be one of the new students at the gifted unicorn school Celestia build not too long ago."

Dust's ears perked up.

"Excuse me, where is that located exactly." Dust asked, having an awkward smile.

"I thought you would have known with that kind of skill. It's up in the royal castle, where the princess herself stays. Just take-

Dust ran from the scene so fast that it created a dust cloud.

'Finally, after all these years, I can finally fulfill my mother's dream for me. I can finally redeem my family's past and secure its future. I can finally…be somepony.' Dust thought to himself, disappearing deeper into the city.

* * *

The young pony gulped loudly as he knocked on the door loudly. A minute later, the door opened, revealing a medium sized, stern looking stallion.

"Can I help you?" The stallion asked, uncaring.

"Uuu-uum, i-is t-this the school for g-gifted unicorns." Dust asked, becoming extremely nervous.

"Yeah, what about it?"

Dust looked up at the stallion as a shiver went down his spin.

'Say something you idiot!' Dust thought. "Do you workout?" He said, with an awkward smile.

Dust mentally face-hooved, leaving the stallion confused and flushed.

"Yeah…but I don't role that way…" He replied, smiling uneasily.

'Great, just great, now he thinks you're gay! Ok, you can still save this, just play it off, keep your cool.' Dust thought. "Oh no, no, I'm not like that…not that your bad looking or anything, it's j-j-just…oh dear celestia, I just made this awkward."

"Look, if you're done joking around I just going to-

"NO WAIT, WAIT, WAIT!" Dust screamed, stopping the pony from closing the door. "C-c-can I-I just…come in."

"Why didn't you just say so?" He asked.

Dust froze in his place, feeling completely stupid.

'Yeah you idiot, why didn't you just ask?!' He thought. "SHUTUP!" Dust screamed.

"Who are you talking to?!" The pony asked.

"Just…just let me in."

* * *

"So this is the test room?" Dust asked.

"Yeah, just don't blow up anything. The last that happened, we had to replace the whole room." A mare in uniform informed.

"So, are you going to wish me good luck?"

"Nope." She said, walking away.

"Well you were very helpful!" Dust shouted, sarcastically.

He opened the door slowly, peaking in to see a large room similar to a collage classroom. Three, strict looking ponies sat at a table opposing what looked like a stage while a professor explained what Dust thought was chemistry. He also noticed that the entire room was filled will all kinds of unicorns of different sizes and colors. Slowly and awkwardly, he opened the door and walked in.

"Ummm, hi everypony…*gulp*…I'm here for the testing thing." Dust said as his heart raced.

Everypony in the room dropped what they were doing and stared straight at him as if he had leprosy.

"Who the heck are you?" The professor asked.

"My name is Dust Breaker sir…I was wondering if-

"Don't you know you need an invitation to come here?" A pony asked from the table.

"An invitation?" Dust voice cracked.

He turned to look at the three ponies, getting a better look at them. The pony on the left was a large looking blue stallion with black hair and green eyes. The pony on the right was a smaller looking red stallion with yellow hair and green eyes. Lastly, the pony in the middle was a mare with brown fur with a pure white mane. What was intimidating about her thought was that she had bright red eyes, as if she was staring straight into Dust's soul with her gaze.

"Yes, an invitation, nopony can just show up uninvited. It's important so we can properly set up the testing room. You sort of came in here interrupting class." The mare informed.

"I-im sorry…I didn't know. I though-

"You can come back as soon as you get an invitation. So, where do you live so we can properly mail it to you."

"Where do I live?" Dust asked.

"Yes, your home, where you sleep every night."

"Ummm…I don't have a home." Dust said respectfully.

All the students in the room gradually started to whisper to each other, being intrigued by this strange green pony.

"Well…where do you and your parents stay then?" The mare asked.

"I don't have any parents…they were murdered six years ago."

Everypony gasped.

"So what you're saying is that you have no parents or a place to stay?"

Dust closed his eyes and nodded slowly.

"If…if you don't mind…may you please explain what happened?"

"I would, but for it to make scenes I would have to explain it from the beginning…"

About an hour later…

"Thus, that is why I come before you today. So that I may fulfill my mother's wishes and finally redeem my past from what it once was."

Everypony remained silent.

"So after you're father was murdered by a masked pony, the guard wrongfully sent you to prison?" The mare asked.

"Yes, and it wasn't until several days ago that I was released from my sentence."

"You have quite an…interesting story Dust Breaker. It's a wonder how your even here today." The mare said, still trying to comprehend the story. "Allow me to properly apologies for earlier, I had no idea about the situation."

"So what about the invitation I need."

"We can overlook that can we?" The mare said, smiling. "My name is Radiance by the way, I'm the principle here in the school. The blue stallion is Hoarfrost, the proud. He's the vice principle that works alongside me. Lastly we have Jet burst, the crazy. He's a little pyromaniac when it comes to fire."

"It's nice to meet all of you." Dust said, bowing his head.

"As you all know, Princess Celestia is really the one that overlooks the school, almost like a head master. She schedules and also suggests what the students should learn over the years, making sure everypony falls into place. So, with that said, what are you capable of, Dust?"

"What am I capable of?" He asked, thinking too hard on the question.

"Yes, what can you do?" Radiance informed.

"Like everything I can do?"

"Everything, I think everypony would like to see what you can do."

Dust looked around frantically until his eyes spotted an apple on the desk.

"Hey, are you going to eat that?" He asked, pointing with his hoof at Hoarfrost.

"Yeah, I was just about to-

Dust levitated the apple to him, rubbed in on his chest, and then bit halfway into the apple.

"I said I was going to eat that!" Hoarfrost yelled.

"Hold on, give me a second." Dust said with his mouth full.

Dust spat out four seeds into his hoof before swallowing what was left in his mouth.

"Let's talk metaphors shall we, these seeds come from the fruit that bears life, correct?"

Everypony nodded.

"And the fruit comes from the tree that bears its fruit. Ok well let's expand this metaphor."

Dust levitated a soiled flower pot and set it in front of him for everypony to see.

"Fruit is what gives us ponies' life; it feeds our families and makes our country prosper." Dust said, dropping a seed into the pot. "Well let's say we had one year where this wasn't so."

Using his magic, he grew a small vine from the seed. Within seconds the vine withered and became brown and rotted.

"What would we do, surly we would have the supplies and reserves to continue to feed ourselves correct?"

Everypony gazed at Dust, dumbfounded.

"Of course not, because fruits spoil with time, which will result in disaster for all of Equestria."

Dust used his magic again on the vine, making it sprout one apple.

"So tell me, would we have to resort in eating this?" Dust asked, holding the rotten apple. "Not unless we're desperate for diarrhea."

"So how would we solve the problem?" The professor asked, becoming intrigued.

"Sadly, this problem was impossible to fix…until now."

Dust set the good seeds on the floor before he spit the rotten apple in half with his magic. As he tossed the apple into the trash, he removed two seeds from it.

"As you know a withered tree will produce withered fruit because of its DNA coding."

Ripping the rotten vine from the pot and setting it on fire, he planted one rotten seed into the pot.

"Watch, because no matter what I do, it will always be a rotten tree." Dust said, throwing away the ashes of the rotten vine.

Dust conjured a small rain cloud to water the pot and a small yellow ball to act like the sun. He waited for a minute before removing the cloud and ball from the area and allowed the tree to grow. Sure enough, another rotten vine appeared.

"Even after that, I couldn't get the plant to good fruit by natural means."

"Ummm Dust, may I please ask what spell your using to make the tree grow." Radiance asked.

"The first time was a minor growth spell, the second time I just manipulated the time field around the tree make it age 100 years in only several seconds. Don't get me wrong, I make it seem easy but it really takes a lot out of you."

"Where did you learn this?" The mare asked, amazed.

"From spell tombs. It talked about ancient arts and spells that were common practices back when Princess Luna was around. Some spells even go back to Star Swirl the Bearded.

"Yes but that thing you did with the rotten vine, that was-

"Destruction magic used by elemental ponies back when Discord ruled Equestria. It's a shame that some of their knowledge has vanished due to our peaceful times under Celestia's rule. All I have ever seen is levitation, teleportation, and other alteration magic. I have yet to see illusion or conjuration magic done correctly, much less destruction. I guess it's for the best, can't have everypony trying to practice dangerous spells now can we.

"Thank you, may you please continue."

"Yes…now where was I…oh that's right."

Dust, getting a bit exited, blew up the vine with a magical outburst.

"Sorry about that, just making sure everypony was awake." Dust said, rubbing the back of his head. "Anyways, with these facts established, there would seem like there was no stop to this impending doom, but it doesn't have to be this way. Through our gift of magic, and my discovery, we can stop this tragedy from ever occurring."

Dust took the last bad seed and one good seed and levitated them both in front of him.

"From a distance, there seems to be no difference, but you're wrong. Where the problem resides is in its molecular structure. By taking and recording the DNA of this good seed, we can replicate its DNA to the bad seed, altering it into a good seed."

Dust stood onto his hind-hooves and allowed magic to flow through his hooves for better focus on the seeds. He closed his eyes and allowed the spell to do its work. After about a few seconds, the spell stopped, allowing Dust to put the bad seed into his hooves.

"By literally copying the good seed's molecular structure and altering the bad seed to fit that coding, I can now bring life to a seed that would once be putrid."

Dust slammed the seed into the pot.

"And with this discovery, we as a nation can end the threat of starvation once and for all!"

Dark green magic traveled down the Dust's hoof and flowed into the pot, making it glow. As Dust lifted his hoof from the pot, he put his hooves to the side and raised them into the air. Not a second later, a large tree burst from the pot and touched the ceiling, leaving everypony in shock. Dust then slightly tapped the tree, allowing an apple to fall into his hooves.

"Allow me to join the ranks of this academy, and I promise an end to world hunger, and end to droughts and sickness. An end to all of our fears, pain and many more…and all I ask is that you teach me what you know."

Everypony remained silent until Radiance slowly started to clap her hooves. Soon everypony was clapping and cheering his name, and all Dust could do was weep. Knowing that after so many years, he had finally fulfilled his mothers dream for him and had finally redeemed his family. In fact, it was even the same day he received his cutie mark of ancient magic.

Two years later…

"Dust, can you please explain that one more time…the thing with the hooves." The professor asked.

"I'll explain it one more time. The process is simply changing the output of magic and transferring it to whatever you desire."

Dust levitated a glass jar with his hoof and brought it close to him.

"Magic lies deep within all unicorns, otherwise known as our magic well. By tapping into our magic within ourselves through the process of our horn, we are able to use this gift however we please and bring it out. However, this is not set in stone. Yes, using magic through our horns is, in fact, the easiest and most natural way. But as you can clearly see, there are other possibilities. By focusing my magic to my hooves, I can mimic the use of our horn and even make spells more accurate and focused, even though it takes more effort and training.

In addition to this, I have discovered that magic not only reside in unicorns, but in all living creatures as well. Which means that even earth ponies are capable of using this gift if they are magic sensitive."

"What do you mean by, 'magic sensitive." A student asked.

"Let's take a pegasus for an example. Let's say that this said pegasus was born with a unicorn parent or even has a unicorn in his or her blood line. This would mean that this said pegasus would be magic sensitive and would be capable of using magic if given the training. If the unicorn parent trained and pushed him hard enough, the pegasus would be able to cast magical spells equivalent to a unicorns, but that's not all. They would not only be able to cast spells through their hooves, but through their wings as well, practically putting themselves on the same level as an alicorn!"

The bell rang as everypony ran out of the room like a stamped, leaving Dust and the professor alone.

"Are you coming Dust Breaker?" The professor asked, standing by the door.

"Give me a moment." Dust requested.

The professor nodded before closing the door behind him. Dust, realizing he was alone, walked up to a mirror and gazed at his image. He was a proud, eighteen year old stallion with shoulder length hair. He also admired his black uniform which barred metals and badges of his many accomplishments and achievements he had done over the short two years he had been there. He held the rank of master wizard which was honored at the school and was respected by many ponies in Equestria. Learning from the best teachers and even being able to teach the student, he truly became a master of magic itself.

There was only one last goal he sought out for, one that would be recorded in history for centuries to come, one that would stand above all his achievements and accomplishments forever and truly make her mother proud.

"I must become Celestia's apprentice." He said to himself. "And I have the perfect plan for her to finally accept me…"

"Dust, why are you still here, don't you know that we're going to be testing a new student?" Radiance asked, entering the room.

"NOW?!" Dust almost screamed. "But I'm still working on the cure and you know I can't work under pressure."

"I know Dust, but would you be able to move it another class room?"

"Every class is filled today and my dorm room is a complete mess! I need more time to complete this cure without everypony rushing me, I just…I just…"

"Dust, don't give yourself another anxiety attack!"

Dust took a deep breath and exhaled.

"Now, for old time sakes, may you explain what you're trying to do?" Radiance asked.

"You know how I have strived to get Celestia's attention to become her apprentice?"

The mare nodded.

"You are the only one that knows about it, and the project."

"Why have you not told or asked anypony for help?"

"I want to do this for myself and to prevent any type of sabotage."

"Sabotage?"

"I have overheard Celestia talking about how any attempt to find a cure had been destroyed by some dark force."

"But what is it, what is this virus that you are so obsessed with."

"The virus is known as miasma, the darkest from of magic it can take and the most dangerous. It is capable of brainwashing one's mind, making the infected lose any control of their body and actions. It grants the user unlimited power over black magic and feeds off of anger and fear. It is also the same virus that infected Princess Luna 1000 years ago, turning her into Nightmare Moon."

"So you plan on curing her, how?"

"I have acquired a small dosage of miasma through great sacrifice and sealed it away in a large fiber glass bottle. So far it has just been trial and error, but I am so close to finding the last ingredient to destroy the virus permanently. Once I present this to Celestia and free her sister, she will take me in for sure and restore Equestria to its former glory. I just need more time…

"Dust, there's a family downstairs that are here for the testing and we're still not ready. Would you be able to give them a tour of the school?" A pony T.A said, opening the door.

"DOES NO ONE…*sigh*…fine, but just move my project to a secluded area, and DON'T drop the flask!"

"Yes sir."

* * *

"Is that them over there?" Dust asked.

"Yeah, just do what you got to do." A pony behind a counter said before putting a newspaper in front of his face.

Dust coughed loudly, adjusted his robes, and put on a smile as he approached the two ponies, one male and the other female. The stallion was light blue with dark blue hair while the mare was pale white with light purple hair and white hair.

"I take it you're the new student here." Dust said, pointing to the stallion.

"No, that would be-

"Your wife I take it."

"I used to be good, but I'm not the new student either." The mare answered.

"Look, I am a master wizard in this school and I do not have the time to play games with-

Dust's robes were tugged on by a small purple filly, cutting off his ranting. As he looked down, his mood changed from annoyance to confusion.

"She is the new student." The stallion said with pride.

Dust became even more confused.

"Who are you and what do you think this academy is anyways. It's not a playground you know."

"My name is Night Light and this is my wife, Twilight Velvet, and yes. We are fully aware that this school is to be taken seriously, which is why we have an invitation from the school itself."

"Very well, I shall now ask the child some questions." Dust said, looking down at the filly. "What is your name little one."

"My name is Twilight Sparkle sir." The filly said with a grin.

"Twilight Sparkle…"

The name bounced around in his head like a raging wasp.

"That's an interesting name I guess, but how old are you?"

"I'm ten."

"Ten? Wow, joining at such an early age to. In fact, that was the same age I-

Dust was suddenly hit by the painful memory of his mothers passing, forcing him into a thousand yard stare.

"Mister, is something wrong?" Twilight asked, slightly concerned.

"No…nothing is wrong…I just wish I was as fortunate as you." He said, snapping back to reality. "Anyways, if you would please follow me please, I can give you a tour of this wonderful school that Celestia has placed for us."

After forty-five minutes of Dust giving a tour to the three ponies, it finally came to its close.

"This is one of the last things on the tour, and it is a magic scanner."

"Oooo, what's it do?" Twilight asked.

"It looks deep within a unicorn to see how powerful their magic is and also calculates how much potential they have within them. In simple terms, it scans your magic."

"Can I try?" Twilight asked.

"Now, now Twilight. You can't just walk in a room and let this stranger test you know." Night Light said, concerned.

"I'm sure she will be fine. After all, this is Celestia's school." Twilight Velvet encouraged.

"It's also my invention, if anything was to happen, I could stop it with ease." Dust said, almost prideful.

"Who are you again?" Night Light asked.

"Dust Breaker, master wizard."

"Wait, you're the one that cured-

"Mad pony disease, yes that was me. It's what I'm well known for along with other things, but that's soon about to change."

"So…will it hurt?" Twilight asked, changing the subject.

"Don't be silly, all you have to do is stand on that circle over there and allow you're magic to flow through you." Dust said activating the mechanism.

The circle glowed brightly before it died down to a dim white color.

"Now, when you're ready, just step on the circle and do what I instructed you to do."

As Twilight stepped onto the circle, it glowed bright red.

"Now, the lights that will be emitted are based on the color spectrum, red being the weakest or having little to no potential and violent being the strongest or having great potential. It is on red now because you haven't allowed your magic to flow yet, will you please do that now." Dust said, pulling a lever and monitoring the screen.

"Before I do that, what color did you get?" Twilight asked.

Dust chuckled to himself.

"I am the color violet, so that would mean I have great potential and power. Only Celestia has been reported to have bright violet though, but I'm right next to her. Soon, we shall know where you stand in this chart."

Twilight closed her eyes and allowed her magic aura to be displayed for all to see, instantly turning the circles light into a yellowish green color.

"You have some potential I admit, but there is clearly room for improve-

The circle abruptly burst into a bright blue color and then an indigo color, leaving Dust speechless.

"W-w-what's going on?" Dust asked, gazing into the monitor. "Your magical power is…phenomenal, but it's still rising."

The circle's color changed from indigo to violet and then soon to bright violet. Even Twilight's parents were shocked by this display.

"Your…your magical potential is off the charts! It's even higher then…"

Even if Dust didn't look like it, he was becoming frightened and even…paranoid.

'It's higher than mine!' Dust screamed mentally. 'But this is impossible, inconsolable. She's only a child and she could possibly be more powerful then me! AND HER POWER IS STILL GOING UP!'

The circle burst into bright white, making everypony squint their eyes. Eventually, the colors died down as the machine powered off.

"How was that mister, did I do well?" Twilight asked, innocently.

Dust had a look of horror as he gazed into the final status of the monitor.

'It's even higher than the princess! What is she, what is this living nightmare in front of me? Is…is this what my father felt when he wanted me killed for being too powerful? I have worked so hard to become the best, to become Celestia's apprentice, and she just walks in here and makes my power seem childish. It…it has to stop.'

Dust looked to his right and saw a sharp syringe. As he reached for it, he stopped and slammed his hoof back to the floor.

'NO, I won't let myself go back down that path! I have given up mindless murder and I refuse to start again!'

"Is…is everything ok Dust?" Twilight asked, being worried.

"Its…it's just surprising how powerful you are at such an early age." Dust lied. 'Remember, you have more experience and will soon find the cure to miasma, there's no way Celestia can deny you after curing her sister. Even if she is more power than I am, I will have that title!'

* * *

"I take it the tour went well?" The T.A asked.

"It was horrible! I felt like everything was about to fall apart!" Dust shouted, being frustrated and approaching the door.

"Was it that bad?"

"No, it's just that this new student could possible take my place!"

"WHAT, how is that-

"Her power…her potential…it's all higher than me and the princess!"

"That's just…weird. Nopony can have that kind of power unless they had a hidden meaning. Do you have any guesses?"

"No, all I care about is finishing that project."

"Ummm, about that."

Dust opened the door to see about fifty ponies in the room, studying for approaching finals. Unfortunately, this was also the same room Dust's project was placed. Acting out of rage, Dust grabbed his T.A and pinned him to the wall.

"I TOLD YOU TO PICK A SECLUDED AREA!" Dust screamed, startling the ponies inside the room.

"T-t-they must have moved in while you were doing the tour, I swear."

Dust released his grip, shaking in his place.

"Do you realize what is at stake here?!" Dust yelled.

"What's gotten into you lately? You're acting like you've seen Nightmare Moon herself."

"I don't care what you think right now, just help me set up and don't screw up!"

Dust and his assistant slowly walked in the room, being eye balled by eveypony in shock.

"Sorry for the interruption everypony, being put in such a high pedestal and expected to do the best can be stressful, especially when lives could be on the line."

Everypony went back to studying but some kept watching the scene from the corner of their eyes. Several minutes passed as Dust and his T.A fumbled around with flasks and ingredients, attempting to get results under the illusion of pressure.

"NO, put that bottle NEXT to the fire, not over it!" Dust yelled.

"Sorry, sorry."

"Ok, hand me the miasma, CAREFULLY!"

Dust lifted the flask gently with magic and set it over a fire. After putting several ingredients in, the black liquid in the bottle started to boil violently, demanding everyponies attention.

"This is the closest I have come to solving this, there just seems to be one thing missing. I know light damages it and that it increases strength in darkness, but what do I have to do to destroy it completely and save those under its spell…"

He reached over and grabbed a random plant and dropped it into the flask. The plant was immediately overtaken by the black smog and practically vanished.

"Nothing as usual, it was just consumed without mercy. Wait, what if I use something poisonous? Do you have any more Belladonna?" Dust asked, looking at his T.A.

"Deadly Nightshade?"

"Yes, just get it."

"But sir, this plant could cause heart failure if-

"Just do it!"

By the time the T.A left and returned the miasma within the bottle had increased twice its size.

"Here it is sir, but please be careful." He said, holding the flower in a protective vase.

"You do you think I am, I'm not a kid anymore you know?"

Dust levitated the vase to him and set it on the table. Removing the plant with his magic, he levitated it above the flask.

"Please, for the love of my mom, please work…"

He released his grip on the plant, allowing it to fall and be consumed by the black smog. The miasma reacted differently than before, almost violently. It did this for several moments before it returned to normal, leaving Dust staring in hopelessness.

"&( &*#!" Dust screamed, slamming his hooves onto the table and causing everypony to look up in fright. "EVERYTHING I HAVE EVER DONE HAS ALWAYS ENDED IN FAILURE!"

"Dust calm down. Some mysteries aren't meant to be revealed until the right time."

"WHY DON'T YOU SHUTUP!" Dust screamed, making everypony shake with fear. "YOU HAVE DONE NOTHING BUT HINDER MY WORK! STOP MY PROGRESS OF CURING THE MOST DEADLY VIRUS THE WORLD HAS EVER SEEN AND I HAVE HAD ENOUGH!" Dust shouted as dark green aura erupted from his body.

During Dust's venting, the miasma within the bottle was growing at a rapid pace; taking up what little space was left within.

"Dust, the bottle, it's about to-

"IT'S LIKE THE ENTIRE WORLD IS AGAINST ME, FORCING ME TO MESS UP AND FALL RIGHT BACK TO WHERE I WAS BEFORE! WELL I'VE HAD IT, I'VE HAD IT WILL ALL OF YOU AND I QUIT!"

"DUST, BEHIND YOU!"

The angered pony spun around to see that the miasma had completely filled the bottle and was threatening to explode.

"It reacts to emotion…

Dust stayed frozen as he continued to witness the bottle shake violently before him. Seconds later, a large rainbow explosion was seen outside that shook the room like an earthquake. Dust quickly turned to everypony in terror.

"EVERYPONY GET OUT BEFORE-

A purple beam of magic hit the room, sending everything in dismay. Dust and his T.A hit the floor like a rock as shards of glass and debris was shot everywhere. As Dust looked up, he saw that not only had the bottle of miasma hit the floor, but that a huge crack had formed on it. The green pony watched in complete terror as the crack enlarged and the bottle shattered, realizing the virus.

"No…NO!" Dust screamed, standing up.

The miasma cloud flew into the air and expanded due to the terror in the room, allowing it to cover the entire ceiling. Before it had time to escape out into the world through the gaping hole in the wall, Dust teleported in front of the entrance, blocking its path on his hind-hooves.

"SOMEPONY GET HELP NOW!"

Dust shot multiple light beams into the black cloud, making some of it disintegrate from the pure brightness. As he continued to battle the darkness, he caught his T.A standing in fright at the scene.

"RUN YOU FOOL!"

The miasma formed into a narrow tendril like shape and impaled Dust straight into his heart. Dust's coat and hair turned pure black as his eyes burst into a bright green color until all the miasma had disappeared within his body. Dust turned to face the outside world as his coat and hair returned to normal. He finally saw where the purple blast had come from and stared in disbelief. What he saw was Celestia anointing Twilight into the academy as her student; saw his life work destroyed before him with one simple act. It was an image that would burn forever into his mind.

"I will make you pay for this…Twilight Sparkle."

Dust lost all connections with his body as the miasma overtook his mind and forced him to fall out of the window. Before he hit the ground that would have ended his life, he vanished in a burst of black aura, never to be seen for several years…

Eight years pass…

"Big Brother, what's going on?" Twilight asked, being worried.

"Say in bed Twily, this doesn't concern you." Shining armor ordered.

"Lieutenant, we need you on deck now!" A pegasus captain shouted.

"Brother, please tell-

"Do as I say, it's for your own good."

The two guards ran outside and slammed the door. Twilight, being curious, opened the window to her room. To her horror, she saw that the entire city of Canterlot was engulfed in fire and black smoke. Within a split second, she saw a large green and black ball fly across the sky and explode as it hit the ground, sending her flying back against the wall.

"Doesn't concern me huh!" Twilight yelled as she grabbed what she could and ran out of her room.

As she ran down the hall, she could see large gaping holes in the wall along with multiple panicked and wounded guards. She skid to a stop at one of the guards who looked like he was covered in black tar.

"What happened to you?" Twilight asked.

"One pony…one demand…to powerful…" The guard whispered, going into unconsciousness.

She turned to see three more guards, shivering in their place.

"Tell me, has Nightmare Moon returned?"

The ponies continued to shake in their place, as if they were lost in their own little world.

This has to stop…where can I find the princess?" Twilight asked, pulling an active guard aside.

"She's gone, nopony knows where to but she's gone I tell you! There's…there's nowhere to hide, we're all done for…WE'RE ALL DONE FOR!" The guard screamed, running away.

"With or without the princess, I'm going to stop this."

"Not without me you're not!" Spike shouted, coming around the corner.

"No Spike, this is way more dangerous than anything I have ever seen. You can't come."

The building shook as another blast landed somewhere in the city, only closer this time.

"You're going to need me out there, and I'm not taking no for an answer."

* * *

"FALL BACK!" A guard screamed, turning to his squad.

Without warning, a dark green unicorn leaped over the barricade of furniture and landed in front of the guard. Giving no second though, he smashed the guards head into the cobbled stoned street and broke the pony's neck. Looking at the other guards, the pony dashed at them in a green and black aura. The guards recoiled in fear as he smashed his hooves though their armor and tossed them aside like ragdolls. Some of the guards even heard the sounds of bones cracking and flesh ripping when he would land a blow, making them even more intimidated.

"REMAIN TRUE TO THE PRINCESS AND FIGHT THIS MONSTER BACK!" A commanding officer shouted.

"FIRE!"

Over a hundred unicorns fired magic at the green pony, only for it all to be compressed into one ball in his hooves.

"TELL ME WHERE TWILIGHT IS, AND MAYBE I WONT EXTERMINATE ALL OF YOU!"

"Under what authority!"

"Desolent, the messenger of death and destruction!"

"We're not going to tell you a darn thing." The commander stated, fearlessly.

Desolent chuckled as he pointed the ball at the guards.

"I'll be sure to send your entire family with you."

Desolent threw the ball and laughed as he heard hundreds of screaming ponies suddenly vanish from view. The ball continued until it exploded a mile away, taking several building with him. As more guards approached to stop him, he grabbed the dust of their fallen allies and threw it into their eyes. He then casted a spell into the ground that shattered the ground beneath them, making guards fly everywhere. Without a designated location to go, he continued to shoot dark green energy balls into random buildings, destroying everything insight until it was all rubble.

He flew into the air and gazed at the sight before he extended his hooves down to the city and rained down energy balls from the sky.

"THERE'S NOWHERE TO RUN TWILIGHT! SOON EVERYTHING YOU LOVE WILL BE A PILE OF ASH BEFORE YOUR HOOVES!"

While Desolent was distracted, a pegasus guards flew in and knocked him out of the sky. The two crashed into the street and skid across it until Desolent grabbed his neck and flipped him into a building. To the corner of his eye, he caught two distinct ponies that made him smile wickedly on the inside.

* * *

"You two need to come with me now!" A guard demanded.

"Where's my son and daughter!" Night Light yelled.

"They're safe at the moment, but you need to leave now or-

The guard's eyes dilated before his head jerked back, snapping his neck. Night Light stepped back in fear as Desolent appeared at the door.

"You're her father, so tell me where Twilight is." Desolent ordered.

"Wait…you're that unicorn that-

"Not anymore because Dust Breaker died the day your daughter stole his dreams from him, but I have another goal. I'm going to destroy everything she loved and worked for just like she did to me, starting with you."

"Night Light, what's going…on." Twilight Velvet attempted to say, dropping her bag.

Desolent smirked as he raised his hoof and blasted the entire house away with one blast, leaving the three ponies standing on a wooden floor. Desolent then teleported behind Velvet and grabbed her around the neck.

"Tell me, or I will do the same thing to her like I did with the guard."

"Don't do it." Velvet pleaded.

"You're sick minded Dust, thinking you can just walk in here and threaten me and family!"

"Watch me!" Desolent yelled, tightening his grip.

Velvet's face started to turn blue as she gasped for air.

"LET HER GO!" Night Light ordered.

"And what are you going to do if I don't?" He asked, suffocating the mare even more. "Time is running out…"

As Night Light ran forward to tackle the green unicorn, Desolent threw the mare forward into Night Light's face. The two had no time to react as they were suddenly blasted back by a large magical ball that sent them rolling into the streets.

"Do you still want to resist, you foolish ponies!" Desolent yelled, walking out of the destroyed house slowly.

"Do what you want to me, but leave my family alone!" Night Light shouted.

"I'm not after you idiot, but if I have to make you suffer to get what I want then so be it!"

Desolent dragged the Twilight's mother towards him with his magic and sat her up to face him. Without any sighs of remorse, he put his hoof into her face and conjured a black ball.

"Let's see you be so stubborn after I turn your wife into a pile of ash!"

At that same moment, Shinning Armor tackled Desolent to the ground, making him fire the black ball into another building.

"For crimes against Princess Celestia and her ponies, you are-

Desolent grabbed Shinning's throat, shutting him up before he threw him into a dumpster.

"Shinning!" Velvet cried.

"So he has significance to you then…perfect." Desolent said, smirking.

He took two steps towards Shinning's location before he was grabbed from behind.

"Where do you think you're going?!" The captain said, struggling.

"It depends on what you believe in solider…"

Desolent burst into a black cloud of smoke and reformed behind the captain. As the pony turned around, he was instantly impaled through the heart with a black spike from Desolent's hoof. Shinning rolled out of the dumpster to see the captain lifted off of the ground and then thrown into a nearby wall.

"I'LL MAKE YOU PAY FOR THIS!" Shinning yelled, standing on all fours.

"Try it you weakling!" Desolent laughed.

Shinning charged forward and punched Desolent across the face, spilling some of his blood from his jaw. Without holding back, he delivered several blows to his stomach and chest before her blasted Desolent through a large steel building and onto the street. The green pony became enraged as Shinning appeared before him and bucked him with full force. Desolent managed to block it and grab Shinning by his hind-legs, twisting him onto his back. Leaping into the air, Desolent slammed his hoof into Shinning's chest with a loud crash that caused the earth beneath the two to shatter.

Shinning screamed in pain due to most of his ribs being shattered in one blow.

"I'll make the pain go away, hahahahaha!" Desolent laughed, extending his hoof to the wounded unicorn.

"ENOUGH!" A voice shouted behind him.

Desolent turned to see Twilight standing before him in a fighting stance.

"So the coward has finally decided to show herself."

"The only coward here is you." Spike said, wearing what looked to be armor made out of pillows and fluff.

"What in Sithis name are you?"

"TWILIGHT, RUN!" Shinning screamed.

Desolent, becoming annoyed, levitated Twilight's brother and tossed him into a pile of rubble.

"Shinning…" Twilight whispered. "What do you want from us?!" She demanded.

"I want you destroyed for what you did to me! I want to prove to Celestia that you don't deserve the title of apprentice, prove that you have no knowledge of the arcane arts!"

"What happened to you Dust…what turned you into this?"

"The day you sabotaged my work is the day Dust died! I became the ultimate weapon and tool of destruction, but it wasn't enough. I found the forbidden book of the Necronomicon and learned what nopony else before me could ever dream of! Not even Celestia can stop me now!"

"The Necronomicon! ARE YOU INSANE, THAT BOOK WILL CORRUPT YOUR MIND AND USE YOU TO IT'S WILL!"

"NOTHING CAN CONTROL ME NOW! FOR I HAVE BEEN CONTROLLED ALL MY LIFE, AND I WONT BE A SLAVE TO IT ANYMORE! PREPARE YOURSELF TWILIGHT, FOR THE ULTIMATE DUEL OF YOUR LIFE!"

Desolent stood onto his hind-hooves and screamed to the heavens. A black and green light exploded from his body that shot into the clouds, separating the sky with his shear power. The ground shook and the building quivered as his aura increased in size. With one final roar, his aura exploded in a terrifying display of light, leaving a dark green pony glowing with black aura.

"Witness the power of darkness."

Desolent teleported in front of Twilight, pulling back his hoof to slam her into the ground. Twilight's eyes dilated as she leaped to the right, barely avoiding the unicorns hoof as it collided with the ground. She was knocked off balance when the ground collapsed below her, sending her into a ditch. Spike, on the other hoof, landed roughly on the sidewalk but emerged unharmed due to his "armor."

"Twilight, what the heck is this thing!" Spike yelled.

"Get out of her Spike!" Twilight ordered.

"NONE WILL SURVIVE THE GREAT PURGE OF DESTRUCTION!" Desolent shouted, leaping into the air.

The sky dimmed for a moment as the unicorn summoned a green ball into his hooves and fired it at Twilight. The frightened purple pony scrambled to her hooves and leaped out of the ditch just before the ball collided into the ground. Even though she avoided the ball itself, the blast sent her through a building.

"HA, you still can't even teleport can you?! What have you been doing for the past eight years, reading books?!"

Twilight pushed a large wooden plank off of her before panting hard on the ground.

"Well somepony has to, I mean, who else is going to read all those dictionaries."

"Is this support to be the ultimate unicorn who has more power than me and Celestia combined! Ha, I had nothing to worry about."

Desolent appeared before Twilight, grabbed her horn with his hoof and kneed her directly in the face. He then spun around and side kicked her into the broken street surrounded by burning buildings and black smoke.

"You're pathetic Twilight, you don't even know how to defend yourself!"

As Desolent approached, Twilight rapidly started to chuck random objects at the pony, only for him to shatter them into pieces with his hoof.

"All you know is talking, run, and levitation. No illusion, no conjuration, no destruction, no fighting techniques, no nothing! Just a waste of space that Celestia apparently finds useful!"

Desolent then shot Twilight with dark green blast from his horn, sending her skidding across the street.

"WHAT MAKES YOU SO DIFFERENT FROM ME TWILIGHT! WHY WERE YOU BLESSED WITH THE GIFT OF ACCEPTANCE WHILE I LIVED A LIFE OF REJECTION AND TORMENT! WHY SHOULD YOU HAVE THE TITLE OF APPRENTICE WHEN I HAD TO WORK MY ENTIRE LIFE JUST TO LIFE ANOTHER DAY! WHY…WHY, WHY, WHY, WHYYYYYYYY!"

Twilight took this opportunity to blast a magical beam into Desolent's face, forcing him to step back and cover his face in pain. Taking his hoof away from his face, Twilight could see a large scorch mark on the right side of his mussel. Twitching in anger, Desolent pulled Twilight forward with his magic and punched her straight into the ground. Hearing a scream of pain, Desolent laughed, putting his hoof over her head and applying pressure.

"You're a waste of time and effort little pony, and it's time to parish from this world."

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Spike shouted, jumping on the ponies back.

Spike grabbed Desolent's long mane and yanked with all his strength. In addition to this, he aligned his tail and jabbed the ponies back multiple times, forcing him off of Twilight. Spike did everything in his power to distract the pony before he was bucked off.

"I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU, DIGUSTING LIZARD!" Desolent yelled, firing a black and green beam at spike with his hoof.

"OH SNAP!" Spike yelped, hitting the floor just before the beam hit his head.

When the energy blast exploded behind him, he flew forward like a lit bottle rocket and hit his head on a brick house, knocking him out.

"SPIKE!" Twilight screamed, almost becoming enraged.

"Thus ends the miserable life of a baby dragon!" Desolent declared, firing a large energy wave at Spike.

Twilight watched in total shock as the wave hit and exploded, leaving nothing but a large crater and smoke. Twilight shook in anger and terror as tears flowed down her mussel.

"Soon, there will be nothing left for you to life for…and I will laugh over your grave."

Desolent charged a black ball and pointed it at Twilight.

"NOW DIEEEEE!"

As Desolent shot the ball, Twilights eyes burst into a pure white as bright lavender aura erupted from her body. Twilight easily slapped the black ball away and fired a large beam of magic at Desolent, sending him flying through several obstacles. As Desolent skid to a stop, he got up and gazed at Twilight with pure murderous intent.

"I'LL COVER THIS ENTIRE PLANT IN YOUR BLOOD!"

The enraged pony slammed his hoof into the ground as he fired a huge blast of green magic at Twilight. The purple unicorn's horn glowed bright lavender as she fired a magical wave of her own, causing a huge clash of magic that blew away anything left in the proximity. Both ponies struggled to keep their ground as they exerted all of their magical power into one specific point.

"I refuse to lose to a weakling like you!"

"You have murdered thousands of innocents Desolent, and I won't let it continue anymore!" Twilight proclaimed boldly.

"I want to see…you…TRY!" Desolent screamed, exerting more power.

Twilight started to lose ground as Desolent continued to use all of what was left of his power. If this wasn't bad enough, the sky started to streak with lightning as the earth trembled beneath the two unicorns.

"Now everypony will witness the fall Canterlot…starting with you!"

"I won't let you get away with this anymore!" Twilight yelled, losing power.

"It has already begun. Even if I am defeated here today, the world will fall under my power and I will rise above the destruction as their new ruler!"

"Dust Breaker, I know you're still in there somewhere! Please, I can save you from your curse; I can heal the pain that has been done to you!"

"This curse has given me the ultimate power! A curse that you gave me all those years ago!" Desolent said, pointing his hooves at Twilight. "NOW DIE WITH YOUR KINGDOM!"

Twilight lost all of her power just as Desolent threw a green and black to finish her off forever, and all Twilight could do was accept her fate…until something got in her way. The ball did indeed explode, but she was somehow saved by what looked to be a celestial being.

"You have gone too far Dust Breaker!" Celestia shouted in her royal canterlot voice. "All this destruction stops here!"

"Ah, so the princess has finally revealed herself at the last minute no less." Desolent laughed. "Now you to will feel the power of darkness just like your little sister did a thousand years ago!"

Desolent conjured a huge pure black ball of darkness into both his hooves and pointed it at Celestia.

"I'm sorry I let this happen to you Dust…I hope one day you can be saved." Celestia whispered, flaring out her wings and glowing pure white. "But until that day…LEAVE MY PONIES ALONE!"

Desolent launched the darkness bomb while Celestia's eyes glowed pure white, releasing a blinding beam of solar light from her body. The two powers collided for only a mere second before the celestial power shattered through the darkness and collided with Desolent. The dark green pony screamed in terror as his entire body was enveloped in bright white light.

"I SHALL HAVE MY REVEEEENNNGEEE!" Desolent screeched as he was encased in a crystal prison and sent into a bright white portal.

Celestia's eyes returned to normal as she sighed in relief.

"Twilight, are you ok?"

Twilight could do nothing but hug Celestia and cry into her shoulder.

"I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…I failed you and my family…" Twilight said, losing consciousness.

"No Twilight, you saved all of Canterlot today. The whole city owes you their thanks."

Celestia looked to her right to see Shinning Armor carrying Spike on his back, but severely wounded. Followed by him was Twilights parents, helping their limping son walk to Celestia.

"Shinning, you have done a great service today, and so have the rest of you. Where is your captain Shinning?"

"He fell in combat princess, trying to save my life…"

"It's not your fault, what he did was the ultimate sacrifice, and he would have wanted somepony to take his place."

"Do you mean…"

"Yes Shinning, I hear by promote you to captain of the royal guard, bear this title with honor."

"T-t-thank you." Shinnning stuttered.

"We have all lost something today, and it is our job to look to a brighter future and make sure this never happens again."

Celestia took Twilight's family under her wings and teleported in a bright flash of magic. Desolent, on the other hoof, would spend the next five years in the crystal caverns. He was freed during the Changeling invasion due to sensing Twilights presence and power. Once he found his way out, he waited patiently for almost a year to strike back at Twilight until Dark Fire took the throne, ruining his plans of world destruction. Desolent is now at the age of thirty-two and his story still continues, but one thing remains clear. He will get revenge on Twilight if it's the last think he will ever do…

**and going...and going...and going...****and going...and going...and going...****and going...and going...and going...**


	29. Chapter 16 E

**Wow, this gets really dark near the end of the chapter...and i might not be able to put out the next chapter this week due to reasons already explained. As always, enjoy the fanfic.**

Chapter 16 E: Duel of Fate

"As you can see, Twilight, this is the new life you have given me…I hope you're happy with this decision." Desolent concluded.

Everypony remained silent for a brief moment, letting the story sink in.

"You can't blame your mistakes on Twilight, she remains innocent and it was clearly an accident." Cadence objected.

"Even if it was Cadence…" Desolent said, smashing his hoof into the field to make it dramatic. "This cures…this gift I have been given demands her essence, it cries for her power and her blood. Don't deny me of this; it's for your own good."

"Dust Breaker." Celestia said, approaching him. "This curse, this…virus has infected your mind. It will use you as a tool and make you destroy everything you care for against your own will. I'm sorry I let this happen to you, but please listen to me when I say this. The miasma within you will consume you and make you its slave, and once it's done with you, it will destroy you."

"Then why is Nightmare Moon still with us today? Why hasn't she suffered the affects and drawbacks that you claim to be true?"

"Because when the Elements of Harmony freed my sister, it changed what she used to be. She became more caring, even to the point of becoming friends with Dark Fire and the others. The miasma that used to be Nightmare Moon is now a completely different pony in itself with my sister's memories and fears."

"This sounds like another lie, so why should I believe you?"

"You don't have to, it's already been proven through her actions."

"ENOUGH…why don't we ask the pony that was influenced in the first place." Desolent said evilly, looking at Luna. "So what do you have to say about this?"

"My sister wouldn't lie about this subject, and neither shall we." Luna replied. "The mare that is Nightmare Moon is indeed my other half, but what she used to be is no more."

"This is impossible, miasma just doesn't…change."

"Well apparently it did." Twilight finally spoke up.

"Oh what do you know, Twilight?" Desolent said aggravated.

"I know that harmony can change those fallen under its spell." Twilight said, almost sternly.

"That's a load of %*& #^&% because if it was true, why was Sombra and Discord imprisoned for over a thousand years. Does harmony 'pick and chose' who it wants to save?"

"I…I don't…know." Twilight whispered. "I just know that somewhere, deep inside you Dust, is that pony that your mother raised to make a difference. A pony that wanted to change the world for the better and see everypony live the lives they're supposed to live."

Twilight placed her hoof on the field where Desolent's hoof was, gazing into his eyes.

"A pony that can be saved."

"SHUTUP!" Desolent screamed, backing away. "If being saved means anything that Celestia has demonstrated in the past, then I don't want it or need it."

"Is that how you really feel, Dust Breaker…"

The dungeon door creaked open as two voices where heard in the distance. As Twilight looked to her right, she noticed that Desolent had completely vanished.

"So this is what she looks like up close." Stardancer commented, approaching the magical field.

"Yeah, she's pretty cute don't you think?" Dark Fire said, smirking.

"Meh…I'm just shocked that her hair hasn't turned into a giant bush from being in a cave for about nine months."

"We're in a cartoon for little girls, I don't thing logic applies anymore."

"Well guys watch it now, so-

"We'll talk about it later!" Dark Fire yelled, leaving everypony confused. "Twilight, it's time."

"What, already!" Twilight panicked. "But I haven't even slept or prepared!"

"That's not my problem. Stardancer, prepare the teleporter."

Stardancer pressed several buttons and pulled a lever, making the room hum softly. Dark Fire smiled as he entered the prison cell and stood next to Twilight.

"The royals and I rest shall accompany you during this time. Once we're there, I will escort you to the waiting room where my men will prepare you accordingly."

He motioned to Stardancer to continue.

"Hold onto my hoof, the teleporter is still a prototype so it tends to get…rough."

"Then why can't you just teleport us to-

In an instant, all the ponies in the cell had vanished in a dark red flash of light, leaving Stardancer alone…

"I know your hiding in the corner over there with your fancy magic. Come out and maybe we can settle this pony to pony." She said, facing the corner.

The invisibility spell dissipated, showing Desolent with an anger look.

"Desolent?" Stardancer asked, slightly surprised.

"Where did you send her?" He demanded.

"Why don't you try asking nicely, or saying please?" She talked back.

"I can end you right now with just a flick of my hoof, so I will ask again…WHERE DID YOU SEND HER!"

"How should I know, I just pushed some buttons and pulled a lever."

"You know exactly where she went!" He said, pinning her to the wall. "NOW TELL ME WHERE YOU SENT HER!"

"Why should I?"

Desolent's eye twitched in anger as he threw her into the cell and put up a field of his own.

"Tell me or I will start smashing buttons, sending you God know where!"

"You don't have the guts to do that." She stated bodily.

The green pony snarled angrily as he smashed his hoof into random buttons.

"You might have a bigger reputation of destroying everything around you and killing thousands, but even I know you're not stupid enough to throw away your only chance at finding her. How do I know this, because you and I are very much alike…"

"You are nothing like me, so I will give you one last chance…tell me or else." He demanded, putting his hoof on the lever.

"Why don't you make me with that fancy horn of yours?" She said smirking.

Desolent dropped the magical field and pulled the mare forward with his magic. Grabbing the mare by the throat, he put his horn on her head, attempting to get the knowledge he required. Stardancer smiled as he did this and quickly punched his stomach, releasing his grip. Before he could react, the mare kissed him on the lips quickly and just smiled.

"You're kind of cute you know?"

With Desolent in total confusion and shock, she kicked the lever to the teleporter, activating it before throwing him in.

"Stallions are so easy to trick now a days." Stardancer said, as the teleporter charged up.

She chuckled softly before she was abruptly pulled into the cell with magic and vanished along with Desolent. The two appeared in a frozen swamp covered in snow.

"Well that didn't work." Stardancer gowned, rubbing her head.

"YOU STUPID HARLOT!" Desolent screamed, causing birds to become frightened and fly off.

"Hey, you're the one that dragged me into this instead of teleporting out."

The mare could see steam coming off of Desolent from his anger, melting the snow around him.

"You are VERY fortunate that I'm not in the mood to give a slow death today."

"Or maybe because you can't kill a mare."

"Excuse me." Desolent practically whispered.

"I mean come on; you can't even take Twilight down."

"You dare doubt my power!"

"No, I doubt the standard you give yourself. All those Stallions defeated by you alone, but yet you haven't taken down one mare. Why is that?"

"Quite a bold statement, but if you think that I'm sparing you just because you're a mare, then you're sadly mistaken."

"Why then, why haven't you struck me down like the countless souls before me? I'll tell you why, it's because you're afraid of what comes from us, afraid of one single voice that will change your entire outlook on the world. Your afraid because you have seen it happen before with Dark Fire and Trixie, seen what devastation it can bring upon the world because of one sentence from the mare you sought out to destroy."

Desolent shook with anger as he continued to listen.

"You're afraid of love, Desolent, because you know that it will slowly change you from who you are. You're terrified of this emotion because it gives the ponies you hate power beyond your wildest dreams; it's what makes them strive to go on even under the most dangerous of situations. Best of all, I know now that love is perhaps the only way to stop you."

"Why are you telling me what I already know?" Desolent asked.

"I might be a mercenary that works for both the good and bad guys, but I been around for a long time. I can still see the little colt that you locked away in your heart, wanting to be free."

Stardancer walked around Desolent until she was directly behind him, slowly backing away into the trees.

"There's one last thing you should know, I was always very good at improving…"

Desolent spun around to see that the mare had completely vanished.

"Well played…

* * *

"This should be far enough everypony." Rainbow Dash panted, plopping into the snow.

"How far are we?" Applejack asked.

"Wait, where's Fluttershy?!"Pinkie panicked.

"How in tarnation did we even forget about her!" Applejack almost yelled.

"Not to burst everyponies bubble, but Twilight is also missing along with our commanders and enderponies." Lightning Dust said, looking grim.

"This can't be happening, this can't be happening!" Rarity repeated to herself.

"Everypony calm down, let's try to answer what we can!" Rainbow shouted, getting everyponies attention. "Applejack, as far as I know, we have been traveling north for almost a day now, but who knows what a day is anymore."

"Yeah, eternal night sucks." Dust commented.

"Everypony here couldn't agree more." Rarity said.

"Aside from that, I have no idea where Fluttershy or the other are, all we can do is keep walking." Rainbow suggested.

"And then what; we freeze to death?!" Dust asked, becoming frustrated.

"Well what do you suggest then?!" Rainbow yelled in annoyance.

"Girls, in all honesty, we need to find shelter quickly before the next cold front kicks in." Applejack advised.

"So what do we do now?" Rarity asked.

"EVERYPONY PANIC!" Pinkie screamed.

"NO! We are not doing this again Pinkie!"

As soon as this was said, a dark manticore appeared before them in a black burst of magic.

"Can we panic now?" Pinkie asked.

"Yeah…" Rainbow whispered.

Just before they were about to run away like headless chickens, a pink maned Pegasus appeared above the manticore's head.

"Hey guys, I like you to meet Mr. Snuggles."

"Fluttershy?" Everypony asked in shock.

"Oh, umm, and I also have a friend that wants to meet all of you as well." She said, turning around. "It's ok, they won't hurt you, I promise."

From the side of the manticore, a dark purple mare slide down and landed roughly into the snow.

"Thanks Fluttershy, but that's not what I'm worried about." The mare said, flipping her mane to the side.

"MANEFUL!" Everypony yelled, getting ready to fight.

"There's not much time and-

"You have some nerve to come here after what you did!" Rarity yelled.

"I agree with her, what you are and what you represent has turned everything into a war zone." Dust said, approaching her. "You only doomed yourself by coming here."

"Umm, girls, she's not-

"Fluttershy, did she hurt you in anyway?" Applejack asked.

"N-no, she actually-

"Enough, I can fight my own battle here!" Maneful shouted.

"Like when you destroyed the city of Manehatten!" Pinkie joined in.

"You just think that we will trust you after bringing back Fluttershy?" Dust asked, approaching her. "And if I remember correctly, you are the diselement of malice, meaning evil intentions am I correct?"

"This is ridiculous, I come here with news that could save your Equestria, and you want to tell me to buck off?" Maneful said, losing control of her anger.

"Rainbow, you and me, let's take her down." Dust said, flaring her wings.

"No Dust…not this time." Rainbow finally said, speaking up.

"What, are you joking right now?" Dust asked. "This is Maneful were talking about, not some common solider."

"She saved my life from Ammisive and apparently saved Fluttershy from the forest. Also, if you all have forgotten already, she did lie to try to save us in the hideout." Rainbow pointed out.

"I'm sorry Dash, but if you're not going to help me, then I'm taking her down. Who else is with me?"

Some of the others agreed, taking steps towards Maneful.

"You know, it's sad how when a pony comes in need of help, that even the elements of harmony reject them. Maybe that's why Nightmare Moon and the others hate Celestia and her rule, because they were all rejected and punished when they were in desperately need of their help. Dark Fire was right; friendship really is nothing but a lie…and darkness has truly won…" Maneful whispered, shedding a tear and making everypony freeze. "Goodbye, I hope you enjoy your new life under a dark empire…"

Before Maneful could fly away, Fluttershy grabbed her hoof and pulled her in for a hug.

"I'm sorry Maneful, but we have been through so much during this time…please don't take it the wrong way."

"How can I?! Everything I have ever done has just made everything worse! All I want is forgiveness for the things I've done, and I can't even have that…please, just leave me alone."

"Maneful…please, we really need you right now. Don't let go of your hope because of one argument, I've already seen that happen to one friend before, I don't want it to happen to another."

Maneful shut her eyes as more tears flowed before she turned to the others.

"Ok Fluttershy, I'll try." She said as Fluttershy wiped away her tears.

Everypony gave Maneful their attention as she stepped forward nervously.

"Twilight has been captured and taken to Nightmare Moon's castle in the Everfree forest."

"Wait, so now we have to go back!?" Rainbow shouted, plopping down in the snow.

"Yes, but the army has left and the barrier is down. Plus, this manticore has a strange connection with Fluttershy, he should listen to anything she tells him to do."

"But how do we save her, we're just normal ponies compared to them, and without the commanders and the enderponies, what could we do?" Rarity asked.

"Being with the diselements for so long has shown me what their hearts are truly like. We all just want to be forgiven and loved just like all of you, but we are all afraid of what Celestia would do to us. This is why we keep fighting, in hopes that we can find what we have been searching for all those years ago. Even Dark Fire feels this way, I just know it, but now we can finally have our wishes granted. The elements that all six of you bear can finally free us of our curse and liberate us of our eternal suffering. We could finally live together as a whole instead of being separate, like it has always been, but it can only happen with your help.

This fighting has done nothing but tear loved ones apart in hopes of a new world, and it has to stop. Please, I'm tired of living like this; I'm tired of living in a cold world of pain and suffering. End it, so that Equestria can finally be at peace."

"I'm in." Applejack said.

"Me too." Fluttershy added.

"If it means sunlight, then I'm in to." Rarity added.

"Sure, it sounds cool." Dust said, smirking.

"I'm always in." Rainbow stated proudly.

"Then let's rewrite history…" Maneful said, smirking.

* * *

"Shinning, escort the royals to the waiting room, I will take Twilight to the armory to prepare."

"What if the royals try something funny?"

"The restraints on their horns should be enough, but if anything happens, you know what to do."

"Yes, run away screaming."

"No you idiot, use that control on your hoof to increase the power on their restraints, and if necessary, drain their power."

"Ok sire." He said, turning to the others. "Follow me, and don't try anything stupid."

Twilight turned to Dark Fire as soon as the others left.

"Dark Fire, will they be okay?" Twilight asked.

"No, I'm throwing them in a lava pit…don't be silly Twi, I told your brother to take them to the waiting room. Would I lie…that much…"

Twilight had a look of doubt.

"Anyways, follow me closely, were going to go through the med bay and it tends to be gruesome."

"It wouldn't be if you would stop this fighting."

"Don't pester me about this now, I already told you that the war ends with what you do today, end of discussion."

The two continued to walk down the halls of Nightmare Moons castle in its full glory…of moss and spider webs.

"Has this place not changed at all?" Twilight asked.

"Nightmare likes to keep things creepy, like a Nightmare…ba dum tish." Dark Fire said, air drumming.

Twilight continued to walk, unfazed.

"And you wonder why I like Trixie more…"

"Just take me to the armory already."

"You really are a boar aren't you?"

The two ponies continued to walk until they reached the med bay. The two guards standing at the door stood at attention when they released who it was.

"Open the door." Dark Fire ordered.

The guard nodded before he turned around. Twilight stared curiously as the guard pressed several buttons on a keypad before the door automatically slide open. As Dark Fire and Twilight walked in, the door closed behind them.

"What kind of technology is this?"

"The future my dear Twilight. It's about time that the ponies of Equestria advanced instead of having to rely on Celestia's magic for warmth. This is why I have taken the liberty to innovate our country to rise above the others and establish ourselves as a superpower. Nopony will ever have to worry about foreign invasion ever again."

"But at what cost, Dark Fire?"

"The lives of others…"

Dark Fire grabbed the curtain around the bed and pulled it away, showing the five commanders unconscious and in bandages.

"What did you do to them?!" Twilight asked, angered.

"I did what I had to, they attacked me and I defended. Unfortunately, they almost suffered the ultimate price for it."

"You heartless animal!" Twilight yelled, tearing up.

"Don't you dare blame this on me; do you think I wanted to hurt them?"

Twilight ignored Dark Fire as she tried to use her magic to heal one of the commanders.

"You just don't know when to stop do you." She whispered.

"I told you that this was the price of freedom for all of us, if this is what it takes to end the war then so be it."

"I don't understand you at all, one day you want peace and then the next you're attacking innocent ponies."

"I don't control the actions of everyone. Maybe if your princess would have actually done her job and showed us "friendship" then maybe this could have been avoided. Until then, we're stuck with war and violence until you put an end to this suffering."

"So it's all our fault then?!" Twilight yelled.

"You're the one that rejected me and threw me out of the house with just a simple sentence. You told me to never come back, then suddenly when I'm about to take everything you loved…you actually cared. Maybe it's you that need the help of friendship instead of me."

"I've had enough of your talking…"

"They'll live if that's what you're wondering, but don't expect me to just freely hand them back to you without a price. After all, you did send them to what could have been there death."

Twilight was in a mixture of anger and hatred towards the stallion behind her, attempting to hold back from thrashing Dark Fire to the floor.

"Your hatred towards me won't help you know. Me and my friends have been hated all our lives and its only made us stronger. If what you preach is true then show it through your actions instead of being a hypocrite."

Twilight stood up slowly and stared at the black pony.

"We're almost at the armory anyways, so let's keep going."

Five minutes pass.

Dark Fire stood in front of a large metal door as he continued to put in numbers in a keypad. Meanwhile, Twilight was getting annoyed by all the overprotective locks that he had installed onto the door.

"When are you going to be done?"

"2…3…7…2…9…1…after the eye scan, hoof scan and mane scan."

"And then what happens?"

"After the twenty-five digit code and voice detector it should open."

Another five minutes later.

"There, it's done." Dark Fire said, putting down a video game controller.

He turned around to see that Twilight had dozed off on the floor. He calmly walked up to her, stared at her for a few seconds, and then slapped her face.

"OWW! What the heck was that for?!"

"I woke you up, now come on, before the door closes."

As soon as Twilight tried to get up, Dark fire grabbed her hoof and tossed her in like a battering ram. There was a loud crash heard before he calmly walked in and turned on the light.

"I was about to get up you jerk!"

"Aint nopony got time for that!"

Twilight rubbed her head in pain until a large black tube like thing hit her head.

"Ahhh…wait, what the hay is this thing."

"That's a DC-15A rifle modified to work for ponies. It's pretty cool don't you think?"

"Hold on…is this made to hurt others?!" Twilight asked, being aggravated.

"That's what a gun does, doesn't it?"

"A…gun?" Twilight asked, being confused.

'AAAAhhhhhh…the cuteness!' Dark Fire screamed in his mind. "Yes, a gun, a device made to shoot projectiles out of it like bullets, lasers, plasma…magic."

"And you're making these why?"

"Aside from ruling Equestria, I'm also an inventor…that sort of ripped of ideas from different books I read…" He said, tapping his hooves together.

"No, why are you making theses if the war is going to be over?"

"It's to enforce the laws here, we can't have random ponies thinking they can rob a bank now can we."

"Celestia never used violent methods and we had a peaceful society, what makes you think you're better than her if you have to enforce the laws with weapons?"

"Why, because she used fear, just look what she did to all of us when we made our mistakes. I on the other hand, have the entire populace under a democracy where-"

"You're still blabbering on about this 'democracy'? Do you even know what that this Dark Fire? It's when the ponies have more power than the government, but when was the last time the TRUE voices of the ponies was heard, not these brainwashed zombies that follow your every whim."

"I'm working on it Twi, here come take a look at this." Dark Fire said, rapidly changing the subject.

The excited stallion grabbed what looked like a giant rotating barrel with a handle and trigger

"This thing here is a minigun…don't know why but it is, and it costs 400,000 bits to fire it for twelve seconds."

"Bits well spent huh?" Twilight asked, sarcastically.

"Ehh, it's not my best thing."

"Why did you bring me here if you were just going to waste time?"

"Because if you're going to duel Trixie, you're going to need this."

Dark Fire opened a locked box and took out a golden tiara.

"My element?!" Twilight yelled surprised. "But where did you find-

"It was in your house, Discord found them when he was doing some sort bowling game involving a large jawbreaker and houses. I mean, how could you forget these things Twi, there the only thing that could potentially stop us and you forget them. I wonder what else you have forgotten…"

Sombra opened the armory door just as Dark Fire finished his sentence and threw in a brown bag that appeared to be…struggling?

"Oh don't act surprised narrator, you know exactly what's in the bag anyways." Dark Fire said, leaving the other two ponies confused.

I was just trying to make things interesting…sorry!

"Does he do this often?" Twilight asked Sombra, as if he was a common friend of hers.

"Almost every chapter…it gets annoying…" Sombra spoke, confused about what he just said.

"You see Twi, the elements weren't the only things you forgot about. Allow me to present…your lost companions."

Dark Fire used his magic to slice the bag open, revealing Spike and Owlicious bound and muzzled.

"What, where, how…" Twilight asked in shock.

"Spike was captured around the time of Celestia's return, possibly the same day you revealed yourself during the trial. Apparently, he went looking for you and got lost. Had to bind and gag him because he was causing too much trouble with the guards and wouldn't shut up about you. For three months he waited patiently in prison, it almost broke him."

"You threw him…IN PRISON!" Twilight screamed."

"Actually…uhhh…no that was another guy. Spike here was actually put in the castle along with the other children that lost their parents and homes."

"You started an orphanage?" Twilight asked confused.

"More like a lost and found for fouls."

"No, it's more like a paid for vacation with…*cough*…no rules." Sombra said, glaring at Dark Fire.

"It's not my fault that Diamond Tiara took your crown and called you Princess Sombrero. Plus you almost turned her into a pickle."

"You need to learn to control these children if you plan to be a father one day." Sombra said aggressively as he stormed out of the room with Spike and Owlisious.

Dark Fire let out a frustrated sigh before he turned around to see Twilight glaring at him sternly.

"What did you do?" Twilight said softly with a hint of aggravation.

"Do what?"

"You know what I'm talking about, don't act dumb."

"Twi it's not really acting, its-

"Tell me why Sombra said you're planning to be a father one day!"

Dark Fire remained confused until the realization dawned upon him like a ton of bricks.

"Well…you see…" He said, sweating and becoming nervous. "Trixie and I had one too many drinks that night…

"You didn't…" Twilight whispered in disbelieve.

Dark Fire gave Twilight a nervous smile as he slowly ducked his head.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU!" Twilight yelled in infuriation.

"It's not my fault though." He said in a high pitch voice.

"YOU GOT TRIXIE PREGNANT AND YOU'RE SAYING IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT!" Twilight screamed.

"Got her pregnant?! Hold on Twilight, I think we're talking about two different things here."

"Do you even know what being pregnant means?!"

"Twilight, we were just playing twister."

"Wait what?"

The door to the armory slide open once again as Nightmare Moon stepped in.

"Dark Fire, the arena has been set up and the ponies await your command to…are we interrupting thy conversation." She asked.

"No, it couldn't have been a better time." Dark Fire said, turning to Twilight. "Twilight, please step into this room."

Dark Fire pressed a large button, opening what looked like a large garage door. Gesturing Twilight into the room, he turned to grab Twilight's "weapon". Dark Fire seized Twilight's elemental tiara, levitating it to her with his magic and gave her a serious look.

"Remember what we talked about Twilight, the fate of Equestria rests in your hooves and I believe you are the only one who can stop it."

As Twilight put on her element, Dark Fire pressed another button next to the large one. She stumbled a bit when the room shock for a second and slowly started to rise.

"Dark Fire, what is this thing." She asked slightly frightened.

"It's a large elevator that will take you to the arena, just don't be afraid."

"I won't fail you again Night Shadow." She whispered before eye contact was broken from the metal door closing.

Dark Fire and Nightmare Moon stood in the room in silence before it was broken.

"Does she know about the dream?" Nightmare asked, charging her magic.

"You mean the eminent future, yes. I explained to her what needs to be done and what to do afterwards. How did the others respond to it?"

"Sombra is afraid that Celestia will still imprison us even after we give her back her kingdom and Chrysalis is worried about Death Fires release and what all that hatred could do to her people. Discord is…well Discord, but the diselements don't know anything about this and neither does Trixie."

"I would be best for them not to worry but what about you Nightmare, do you have any doubts?" Dark Fire asked.

"What Celestia did to us in the trial…when she used her magic to dissipate our hoof." Nightmare said, looking at Dark Fire with worry. "Are we just a figment of hatred and fear…a non-existing body created by miasma. Do I even exist as a real mare or am I just a soulless monster." She said, choking up and dropping her royal we.

"Why are you thinking these things, Nightmare? You know you're not a monster, you care for everypony here. We're all just misunderstood and-

"Don't you get it Dark Fire?! We were never meant to exist; we were just created from a curse that infected Luna, a dark shadow in the corner of her mind never meant to be released. The being you know as Nightmare Moon is nothing more than a spawn of darkness and deception created for the sole purpose of throwing all of Equestria into eternal night…nothing more."

Finishing her sentence, she dropped her head and shut her eyes tightly, attempting to hold back tears. Dark Fire, on the other hoof, wasn't about to sit there and watch his friend go through this alone. Becoming bold, he lifted her head to look her in the eyes and hugged her tightly.

"Nightmare…you know that's not true, in fact, I was never meant to exist either."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm the result of Night Shadow stopping Death Fire from being released and as a result, have Death Fire's hunger for domination along with Night Shadow's personality. The point is, things just don't happen for no reason. You're important to us Nightmare, even if you think you're not. You have shown me that even those born in darkness can be redeemed and have a heart. Just think of it, soon we will all be free of this curse and live among the ponies of Equestria like it should've been."

"But what if the elements forsake me…punish me for what I truly am. What if the elements erase me from existence…"

"That won't happen Nightmare, I won't allow it."

The two of them held there hug for a bit longer, enjoying each other's warmth and comfort before Nightmare broke her hug.

"Is there anything else you want to tell us?" She said, using the royal we again.

"I have told the others this…if things don't work out and I turn into that…thing, just remember that I will always love you and the time we spent together."

Nightmare nodded before the two of them vanished in a dark blue light of magic.

* * *

A single dim red light was lit in the room of the elevator as Twilight stood in the center, meditating on what was about to happen. She took a deep breath through her nose and exhaled out her mouth.

"Remember everything you have learned Twilight, from the times of Nightmare Moon to the newly dawned threat of Dark Fire. Remember that everypony in Equestria is counting on you…"

Twilight lifted her right hoof and put it to her chest. Closing her eyes, she focused magic to her horn and casted a small calming spell.

"Remember what happened to Celestia and the others, remember what happened to your home…remember what happened to Night Shadow."

The elevator abruptly stopped, signaling that the door was about to open. Twilight put her hoof down and stared at the door intently.

"I'm the one that caused all of this…so it's my responsibility to fix it."

The door opened, letting in bright light from the outside. Twilight squint her eyes as she adjusted to the sudden change in brightness and walked forward. As the door closed abruptly behind her, her ears were bombarded by the shouting and cheering of ponies from all around her. She looked around in awe, taking note that she was now inside a dueling circle modernized to fit their time. The floor and walls were solid steel, including the stands where the ponies sat. She counted six rows circling the entire arena, all connecting to where Dark Fire sat.

The dark pony had his own personal chair accompanied by his elements to his right while Nightmare and the others were to his left. The royals, being cuffed and bound, had front row seats in front of Dark Fire and were being constantly watched. He gave Twilight a smirk as he stood up and grabbed a microphone.

"Mares and gentlecolts, lend me your ears…because if an obnoxiously loud microphone wasn't enough to get your attention then maybe me talking nonsense will." Dark Fire announced, making a fool of himself. "Anyways, who's ready for absolute carnage?!"

Everypony screamed their lungs out in excitement, making Twilight's ears twitch in pain.

"Why does he always have to stir up everypony? He has a big enough mouth as it is." Twilight whispered.

"However, not to burst anyponies bubble, I regret to inform you that Vinyl Scratch won't be able to join us today. The poor thing got a cold due to our harsh weather conditions."

'Yeah, Windigos tend to do that when there's hatred around at every corner.' Twilight thought.

'Hey, I can hear you, you know.' Dark Fire nagged at her telekinetically. "Luckly, I have found a replacement for our little problem. Let's put our hooves together for MetalHead!"

The stallion was an average sized Pegasus with a dark gray coat and short spiky hair. His eyes where dark brown but nothing really special, aside the titanium headphones that seemed permanently attached to his ears. Dark fire figured it had something to do with his shackled headphones as a cutie mark but never bothered to ask.

'What kind of name is Metal Head?' Dark Fire thought.

'What kind of name is Dark Fire?' Twilight said though magic, getting back at him.

'I hate you…'

I thought it was a cool name…

"SHUT UP NARRATOR!" Dark Fire yelled.

…

"And now let me introduce our contestants for today. Over in the blue corner, representing the resistance of Equestria and the proud student of Celestia, the one and only…Twilight Sparkle!"

The audience was in a mixture of booing and cheering. The prior because some wanted to see Twilight get obliterated and the later due to the fact that they had money on her and wanted to see a good fight. Twilight could care less though as she approached the center of the ring.

'Oh great, I forgot who I was fighting again.' Twilight thought.

"And over to the red corner, we have a pony with so much magical potential that would strike fear into the hearts of most magicians. A pony that I had once doubted but now rose through the ranks and became my apprentice. She has waited so long for this very moment to finally extract her revenge."

Dark Fire was overcome with excitement as he jumped forward and stood on the railing.

"LADIES AND GENTLECOLT, IT IS MY GREATEST PLEASURE TO GIVE YOU NONE OTHER THE GREAT AND POWERFUL…PRINCESS TRIXIE!"

Twilights ears rang as the crowd screamed in excitement when Trixie suddenly appeared in a bright display of fireworks and explosions. Twilight took notice that she wore her royal magician's cape and crown as she stepped forward and stopped only mere inches away from her.

"Hello Sparkle…it's been a long time since Trixie last saw you." She said, smirking with pride.

"So even after all this time, you're still angry with me about 'upstaging you' to save all of Ponyville?"

"So Dark Fire never did tell you after all…"

"What do you-

"These two ponies meet long ago in a town called Ponyville where the rivalry was born." Dark Fire informed. "After an incident with an Ursa Minor, everything Trixie worked for was destroyed right before her eyes. It is unknown how Twilight felt at the time, but Trixie fled the town, fearing for her life as everypony chased her out of the town.

'That's a flat out lie, Dark Fire, I told everypony to let her go.' Twilight thought in her mind.

"Returning to her mother without enough bits to cure her heart disease, Trixie watched her mother pass away and forever swore vengeance upon Twilight.

"I did what now?!" Twilight asked.

"You killed my mother Twilight!" Trixie yelled.

"But I had no part in-

"Today, fate has been so kind to give her one chance to finally have her revenge, today is the day that the war finally ends, and today is the day that we witness the duel of fate between these two powerful magicians to decide the fate of Equestria once and for all!"

The dueling circle suddenly started to shake as rocks and metal walls rose from the ground to act as cover and obstacles. In addition to this, a magical transparent dome was placed around the arena to protect the audience.

"With that one act Twilight, you destroyed Trixie's life, and Trixie intends on destroying yours."

"Trixie, you don't have to do this." Twilight tried to reason.

"You didn't either…"

"LET THE BATTLE BEGIN!" Dark Fire yelled.

"Perhaps before Sparkle, you were more powerful then Trixie, but now Trixie has surpassed you and your worthless friends. Prepare…PREPARE TO HAVE EVERYTHING YOU LOVE TAKEN AWAY FROM YOU!"

Trixie's magical aura exploded in bright blue and white colors as she stood up on her hind-legs. She smirked at Twilight as the wind from her power started to push her back and cause Twilights hair and fur to become ruffled.

"That's the exact same power Dark Fire had when he took over Equestria!" Twilight said, struggling to keep her footing. "But how could she get so strong in such a short time?"

"One can learn a lot when your friends happen to be the most powerful ponies in the history of Equestria. Something you didn't take advantage of when you were under Celestia's wing."

"But they never displayed this power when we fought them, why would they hold back against Celestia?"

"You stopped them before they had a chance to unleash their abilities? Nightmare, Discord, Sombra, and Chrysalis all possess the same magical potential Dark Fire, but they were all stopped just in time. Unfortunately for you, we have had nine months to prepare, and that was plenty of time for Dark Fire to teach Trixie everything he knew…"

"No…"

Twilight could have sworn Trixie's eyes flashed red as two blue energy balls formed in her hooves, distorting the rooms color in the process. She put the two spheres together to create a bigger sphere.

"Witness a power never seen form pony eyes!"

Trixie threw the ball forward, making Twilights heart skip a beat as she quickly hit the floor. As the energy ball sailed above her, she quickly stood to her feet and summoned magic to her horn. However, instead of the ball exploding behind her when it hit the wall, it split in two and circled the arena's walls. Twilight noticed what was about to happen just in time and summoned a magical bubble to protect herself just as the two energy balls hit. Twilight felt like time slowed down as her ears rang loudly and thousands of magical shards flew all around her.

Trixie smirked as she condensed as small ball air and fire into her hooves and shoot it at Twilight in one large wave. Twilight shielded herself from the fire, but the wind launched back into the wall, shattering her shield into hundreds of lavender pieces. As Twilight struggled to get up, she saw Trixie summoning magic through her horn and fired it in a large blue beam. Twilight fired a ray of magic of her own, but the sudden contact with Trixie's magic forced her against the wall as she fought back Trixie's beam in a power struggle.

'Twilight, you're the element of magic and my student, it's time you acted like it.' Celestia said, telekinetically.

'but what if-

'No buts, no what if's, no trying and no attempting…just believe in yourself and do it like I trained you to do…'

Twilight's element glowed as she obtained some newfound courage and started to fight back the beam with all her power. Trixie was surprised as she slowly started to lose ground, but soon replaced this emotion with confidence.

"That's it Sparkle, fight the great and powerful Trixie with all your strength, because Trixie has only begun!"

The two ponies slowly started to push their magic into one another, making what looked like a large magical blue and lavender pancake until it exploded, launching the two ponies across the arena. Twilight recovered before Trixie did and fired a lavender beam of magic in an attempt to end the duel quickly. Trixie, on the other hoof, flipped to her hooves and slapped Twilight's magic away like a wad of paper.

"You're going to have to do better than that, Sparkle!" Trixie shouted, launching an energy fissure with her hoof.

* * *

"Yep…they already started without us." Maneful said, as the bright blue flash of light illuminated her fur in the dark night.

Maneful, Rainbow, and Dust all stood on the ledge outside of Nightmares castle about 500 feet above the ground.

"Let me have a look then." Rainbow demanded, pushing Maneful away from the window.

"You already looked; quite hogging the window." Dust said, shoving Rainbow aside.

"Well she's my friend, so I think I should have another look!"

"And I haven't gotten to look at all, so I think-

"I think you both should shut up!" Maneful yelled just before covering her mouth. "I-I'm sorry…it's just that we need to hurry up before you know who goes into the Twilight zone."

"Right behind you." Rainbow said, reading herself to fly. "What about you, Dust?"

"Dang! Trixie is putting on quite a lightshow." Dust said amazed.

"Then we don't have much time." Maneful said, grabbing Rainbow and Dust just before teleporting.

The three reappeared in the cover of thick undergrowth and trees where the others were hiding.

"A little warning the next time you do that." Rainbow said, brushing off the snow.

"So what's goin on with Twi?" Applejack asked.

"To put it in short…she's getting her flank kicked." Maneful said bluntly. "So we need to come up with a plan to get in."

"Well…not to be rude or anything, but why can't we just teleport in?" Rarity asked.

Maneful sighed heavily.

"Because in the words of Dark Fire, 'If the enemy wants to get in the castle, they are going to have to find a none cliché way to do so." She said with obvious boredom.

"And that means what exactly?" Rainbow asked.

"Ooo, I know, I know! Pick me!" Pinkie shouted.

"Pinkie, let's have her explain." Applejack said.

"Awwww…." Pinkie said, drooping her ears.

"Anyways, what it means is that Dark Fire has made some type of shield that prevents ponies form teleporting inside. This is why they use a manual teleporter back in Canterlot. It's a nice trick, but it's so annoying. However, that's not all. Dark Fire has read every trick, studied every maneuver of infiltration and taught it to the guards. This means that we can't go around the back door, open a ceiling window, or do anything unorthodox."

"Then how do we get in…t-t-the scary castle." Fluttershy whispered.

"I…have no idea." Maneful said, smiling. "Which is why I think it will work."

"Huh." Everypony said dumbfounded.

"Just follow my lead…"

* * *

"Man I hate guard duty." A familiar guard said to his friend.

The other guard tensed up, knowing what was probably about to happen.

"I'm going to tell you this one time…why haven't you learned for the last TWO TIMES THIS HAPPENED!"

"All we do is-

"Shutup, just shutup, it's for our own good ok! I don't know what kind of medical bills you get, but mine are off the charts! Please just be quite!"

"I wish something exciting would-

The other guard rushed over, tackled his friend, and put both hooves over his mouth to shut him up. He looked around in panic before taking a huge sigh.

"Good…*pant*…I think I avoid it this time."

"Hey you two!" A voice shouted from a good twenty feet away from them.

The guard gulped loudly, practically turning white form fear.

"W-who i-i-is it?" He asked.

It was then Maneful and the others appeared boldly before them from the dense trees.

"Maneful, what are you-

The guard suddenly remembered his manners and jumped into attention, quickly followed by the other guard.

"Forgive us madam; we didn't know you were arriving."

"Hey, why aren't the elements of harmony in chains, are they cosplayers?"

"It could just be a trick."

"It could…or maybe they captured me and plan to rescue Twilight in a daring but bold escape right under Dark Fire's nose." Maneful said without emotion.

Rainbow and the others felt a slight wave of fear overcome them. That is, until Maneful and the guards started to laugh.

"That's a good one Maneful!" The guard said, attempting to breath from laughing to hard.

"It was almost believable to, did you see her face."

"Yeah, Maneful being capture, what a joke!"

"And now they plan to free Twilight to…hahahahaha!"

Maneful motioned to the other to continue as the two guards continued to roll around and laugh on the floor. By the time the guards were done, Maneful and the others were long gone.

"I guess that wasn't so bad…right…"

The guard looked around for his friend but couldn't find any trace of him, it was like he had just vanished.

"Hey now, jokes over, come out now." The guard said smiling until a dark green hoof tapped his shoulder. "Holy hay man, I told you that's…not…funny…"

* * *

"Ok girls, were in, but I must tell you all some things before we continue." Maneful said, pulling the others into cover. "I might be working for you, but my loyalty is to my father, if you try anything to harm him I won't hesitate. Secondly, if I'm going to be a double agent, I need you all to treat me like your enemy when others are around. So don't run up to me and hug me if Dark Fire or anypony else is around…that means you Pinkie Pie." She said, pointing at her. "Lastly and most importantly…don't do anything stupid."

"Well this is all nice darling, but we're still up against hundreds of guards and everypony else that was every against Celestia." Rarity pointed out.

"She has a point Maneful, it's going to take a miracle for us to save Twi." Applejack added.

"You're the good guys, isn't that your job, to perform miracles like it was written in a script or movie? I mean come on, it happens all the time…

"That's in movies though; this is the real deal here." Dust interrupted.

"Well make a plan before your spotted." Maneful said, getting worried.

"Make a plan? I thought you had a plan?! Rainbow shouted.

"Quite you fool or you're going to get us captured."

"Why didn't we come up with one while we were still outside?" Applejack asked.

"I was improvising; it's your friend, not mine. You can't expect me to constantly help you guys out, face it, the answers to everything don't just come from the sky!"

And just like that, a giant ceiling tile crashed over Maneful's head.

"Maneful, are you ok?!" Fluttershy asked in panic, using her 'loud' voice.

"Girls I'm fine, I can handle the pain…until it hurts." She said, collapsing onto the floor.

"Hey girls, look what I found!" Pinkie shouted, hanging from the ceiling.

"Gosh darn it Pinkie, look at what you did to Maneful here." Applejack said, slightly aggravated.

"How did you even get up there?" Dust asked.

"There's no time for that, come on." Pinkie said excitedly.

"But we got an unconscious pony down here along with one earth pony. So either you tell us how you got up there or-

"Down this ally, I hear their voices." A guard said in the distance.

"Of all the things…" Dust whispered, grabbing Applejack. "Rainbow, grab Rarity before they see us."

Rainbow nodded, quickly grabbing her friend and flying to the ceiling. Dust quickly followed and set Applejack down before turning to Fluttershy.

"Hurry up or they're going to catch you." She whispered.

"S-she's…to heavy." Fluttershy squeaked.

Dust unfurled her wings and shot forward, grabbing Fluttershy and practically her behind a dark pillar in the shadows. She quickly turned around and pulled Maneful's unconscious body into the dark where they were and covered Fluttershy's mouth before she could even say a word.

"Well I thought the voices where this way…" The dark guard said, reverting back into a changeling.

"Darn it Imago, you can't just assume where ponies are at!" Sensile yelled.

"Look, I'm just freaked out right now ok! I heard Desolent infiltrated the castle and I don't want to run into him."

"So you run to the voices?"

"I-I don't know, I get jumpy really quick."

"Stop panicking brother, just focus on our objective."

"Ok, ok…ok…*breaths in*…and that was what again?"

Sensile faced hoofed.

"Meet up with Dark Fire and the others at the arena to warn him about a possible threat."

"Oh that…we lets go." Imago said, disappearing around the hall with his sister.

"Well isn't that awfully convenient…." Dust whispered, letting go of Fluttershy. "You girls catch that."

"Oh yeah, it's about time we show these bad guys who's boss." Rainbow said confidently.

"Don't get your head in the clouds now; we still need a plan even if we do know where to go." Applejack informed.

"Well, you see…I happened to stumble upon some nice looking elements you might be interested in." Pinkie said, throwing down a box with their elements.

"How the…

"Pinkie sense."

"You amaze me sometime." Rarity added.

* * *

"Was this all your princess taught you to do, run away and dodge?!" Trixie mocked, firing rapid bolts of magic.

Twilight was running around like a headless chicken in attempts to avoid every blast Trixie shoot at her. Every now and then she would return fire, but it was either deflected or absorbed by another bolt.

"Trixie is ashamed that you even defeated her the first time. You're pathetic!"

"Has all that power gone to your head?!" Twilight yelled, creating another shield. "This isn't like you!"

"You know nothing about Trixie, you don't care about Trixie, and Trixie will make you pay for what you did to her!"

Trixie's hooves started to emit dark blue smoke as she brought them close to her chest. A dark blue ball of ice and fire was formed in the middle just before she shot her hooves out at Twilight and fired in a colorful display of blue ash and smoke. Twilight realized that she wouldn't be able to take the hit and quickly teleported out of the way just before it hit her. As the orb hit the wall, it covered it with blue fire and ice and continued to spread throughout the arena. Meanwhile, Celestia continued to watch in horror before she turned to Dark Fire.

"I've seen enough of this, either you stop this now or-

"Or do what; use your power on me like you always have! Stop me just before I can prove a point to you!"

"What point? The only point you are pointing out is that you have gone mad with power!"

"Perhaps…but it's necessary to stop what I have created."

"Dark Fire, I know that you want to be redeemed and forgiven for your mistakes, but this isn't-

"So you know then…" Dark Fire interrupted. "Why did she tell you?"

"Because she trusts me Dark Fire, and she believed that telling me would help prevent this nightmare you're trying to stop, but killing her won't do anything."

"That's not the only thing Celestia…there is more at stake than just Twilight."

"I know about Death Fire, please let us help you before-

"You don't understand Celestia, you might think this is for Trixie or for my glory but it's not…it's for Desolent."

"What…" Celestia said in shock. "You're telling me that this is all just a trap…that you're using my student and your marefriend as bate!"

"Celestia, that stallion…that thing is a demon! He has the diselement of corruption and I believe that he is the reason for Death Fire's release. If he is not destroyed here today at this very spot, he will kill everypony here and this time I won't be able to stop him. Nightmare Moon was right about him the first day we found him, he's too dangerous to be kept alive and he must pay for his crimes."

"And what about your crimes Dark Fire, I thought you believed in redemption and second chances."

Dark Fire froze in realization.

"You think you know everything there is to know about him, but you don't. He was corrupted by miasma like Luna was all those years ago and now his soul is crying out to be freed, but you're just going to ignore this just like you clamed I did to you."

Dark Fire was being overwhelmed by sorrow and anger as Celestia feed the truth into his ears.

"And now that you understand what I had to go through with Discord and the others, you realize that all of this was just a big mistake."

"What do I have to do then…" Dark Fire whispered.

"Find Ditzy Doo…"

During this conversation, Trixie and Twilight were still battling it out with everything they had in yet another power struggle of magic. The only difference in this one was that half of Trixie's magical blast was flying past Twilight's left side. It was the same deal with Trixie but Twilight's magic was flying past her right side instead of left. The two magicians continued to walk around sideways in a clock wise rotation in the arena in hopes of besting the other.

"Soon Trixie will have her revenge for everything you did!" She said, becoming more determined.

"Trixie please listen to me, I'm sorry for not realizing what you were going through or even considering where you had gone after that fateful day, but I'm not the cause of your mother's passing and my defeat won't solve anything or stop the war!"

"You ruined Trixie's life, you left me with no money, with no job, with no home or family, and now I'm going to leave your life in ruin just like you did to me!" Trixie yelled, becoming emotional."

"Don't you think that's already happened with this war, Trixie! What you and Dark Fire did caused me and everypony else to suffer and lose everything they had worked for. It caused ponies to lose their homes and their family, it made them lose their friends and their loved ones!" Twilight yelled, suddenly being overwhelmed with sadness and anger. "I have seen my friends suffer from your decisions, lose everything because of your allies, seen everything taken away from me before my eyes!"

Twilight's element started to shimmer brightly as lavender aura began to emit from the purple pony.

"And it was all because of my stupidity that everything was destroyed. It was because of my mistake that I lost the one pony that loved me for who I truly was, AND IT IS BECAUSE OF THIS, THAT I AM THE ONLY ONE THAT CAN UNDO EVERYTHING I HAVE CREATED!"

Dark Fire and everyone else looked in amazement as Twilight's body practically exploded in bright colors of gold and lavender. Her hair, fur, and tail sparkled brightly as beams of light shot out of her in all directions, illuminating the room and blinding anypony that looked at her directly. Before anypony could comprehend what was going on, the entire room practically exploded in a bright white light as Twilight stood on her hindlegs and screamed to the heavens in one loud cry. When everypony could see again, they saw that Trixie was thrown against the wall, staring at Twilight in total shock.

"And it is me alone who will end this war…" Twilight whispered.

"So this is Twilights hidden potential, I know now why she truly is known as the element of magic." Dark Fire declared, smirking. "Now the real fight can begin."

"Where did you get all this power?!" Trixie shouted, standing back to her hooves.

"This is the power that comes from those that have suffered for long enough. Now, Trixie, you will see just what I am capable of." Twilight stated boldly.

"Trixie won't let you win, and she won't give up so easily. I HAVE PREPARED FOR TO LONG TO LOSE NOW, AND I INTEND ON FINISHING WHAT I HAVE STARTED!"

Trixie gave Twilight a death glare as her eye color faded away and within seconds, the room started to shake intensely as Trixie's blue and white aura expanded yet again to match Twilight's power. The metal floor abruptly shattered as Trixie stood to her hind-legs and shouted just as loud as Twilight did several seconds ago. After thirty seconds of straight screaming, Trixie's energy erupted from her body and blew out the lights in the room. The only bright colors of lavender and blue shinned the room as the two mares faced each other with stares of anger and determination.

"Discord, increase the shields power." Dark Fire said calmly as the everything went silent. "And Metalhead…turn up the music, it's about to get intense."

The gray pony smirked as he took out an mp3 player and plugged it in to the Dj player with the very large speakers. Turning the volume to max with his hoof, he pressed the very large play button right before the speaker's vibrations blasted his hair and fur forward. Twilight's ears twitched in pain before she broke her glare with Trixie.

"What kind of music is this?!" Twilight shouted, covering her ears.

"It's instrumental heavy metal music…you will get used to it." Trixie replied as her eyes returned to normal. "Now Sparkle, we shall truly see who the most powerful magician is in the world."

Twilight quickly casted a muffle spell on her ears before running to the right and rapidly firing bolts of purple magic. Trixie did the same but ran to her left instead, resulting in what looked to be a huge firefight with magic. The walls and random rocks were lit up from all sorts of magical discharges as the two ponies ran around in circles, literally becoming living machineguns.

"You can't keep this up forever Sparkle!"

As Trixie shouted this, she charging a blue ball into her left hoof. She then lunged across the arena, slammed her left hoof into the ground and let the energy explode, launching her into the air. During mid flight, Trixie used her right fore-hoof to launch five blue balls of fire at Twilight, dodging anything sent her way in the process before landing roughly on the ground. Twilight countered by quickly teleporting behind Trixie just as she landed and fired a strong compressed beam into her back. Trixie flew forward abruptly and crashed into a rock, sending debris in all directions.

Trixie flipped to her hooves angrily and chucked the shattered pieces of stone at Twilight with magic. Twilight had other plans though; she blasted all the flying rocks with a large beam that hit Trixie square in the face and sent her into a wall. As Trixie slowly slide down the wall, Twilight ran forward and charged her horn to maximum power. The blue unicorn quickly teleported behind Twilight and raised her hoof to strike her on the back of her head. Twilight somehow sensed this and strongly bucked Trixie behind her before she could even react.

After sliding across the floor on her back, Trixie looked up to see Twilight's horn pointed dead at her from only a foot away.

"Give up, you've lost…" Twilight demanded, as the music in the background abruptly stopped and the lights where restored, leaving everypony in shock.

Trixie had a look of terror until it was abruptly changed into a look of humor.

"I mean it Trixie, I won't hesitate!" Twilight yelled in anger, letting her horn glow brightly.

"You wouldn't dare...you don't have the courage to finish me off like this in front of everypony. What would Celestia think when-"

"I don't care, if it means that the war will end then I will gladly do it!"

Trixie was shocked at this sudden response, it was completely out of her character and Trixie was worried that she had pushed her a little too far. Regardless, the clone had to keep her busy while the real Trixie slowly crept up behind her.

"Dark Fire would never forgive you if you killed me, after all, he chose me instead of you."

"I've heard enough from you!"

"Have you, your nothing but a failure, the pony that started everything to begin with because she could see what was written in front of her."

"Shut up…" Twilight whispered, being overwhelmed by anger.

"Night Shadow loved you so much that he was willing to do anything for you, and you go and stab him right in the heart, telling him to leave you forever."

"Trixie, I swear to Celestia that I will do it!"

"All that time studding friendship and yet you can't even demonstrate it. You're nothing but a selfish, spoiled brat who somehow got noticed by Celestia. YOU'VE FAILED SPARKLE, AND NOW YOU'RE GOING TO PAY FOR IT WITH YOUR LIFE!"

At Twilight's peak of anger, Trixie grabbed Twilights neck and started to strangle her. The clone got up and lifted the purple ponies face to hers.

"AND NOTHING WILL SAVE YOU THIS TIME, BECAUSE THIS IS WHERE YOU'RE JOURNEY ENDS!" The clone announced, putting her hoof to Twilights face. "Was there ever any doubt…"

Twilights eyes turned bright white as she lunched forward, impaling the clone before it exploded in a puff of smoke. With a thunderous shout, Twilight bucked Trixie to the center of the arena where she crashed into a metal obstacle. Twilight spun around in pure anger and pointed her charged horn right at Trixie before she fired in a huge blinding flash of power.

"TWILIGHT NO!" Trixie shouted in terror as she put her hooves out and attempted to push the blast away. "STOP TWILIGHT, PLEASE, I GIVE UP, I DON'T WANT TO DIE!"

Twilight was too enraged with Trixie to care for her pleas for mercy. In one final screech, she released all of her magic into the blast.

"DARK FIRE, HELP MEEEE!" Trixie cried, shedding tears of sorrow as she extended a hoof towards him.

Everypony watched in total horror as the magic engulfed their princess and exploded in a violent display of lavender magic. When the smoke cleared, all that was left was a large skid mark in the floor and a huge gaping hole in the metal wall. Twilight looked up at everypony in the stands, getting mixed looks of shock, horror, and hatred. It wasn't until she looked at Dark Fire, shaking and shedding tears over the stands that she finally realized what she had just done.

"What kind of monster am I…" Twilight whispered in tear, tossing her element to the side and sobbing into her hooves.

The entire room was silent except for the slow clapping of one pony in dark robes, sitting in the stands.

"To think, I couldn't have done better myself."

"Desolent…"

The dark green pony removed his hood from his head, levitating himself through the shield and landed softly next to Twilight.

"Not only have you released your hidden potential, but you have taken your first life as well. It's a shame that Dark Fire's apprentice had to come to an unfortunate end but I'm sure that he now knows that I should have been his choice." He said, giving Dark Fire a mocking glare. "So tell me Twi…how does it feel to be just like me?"

"I am nothing like you!" Twilight yelled, backing up from him.

"I thought so to before, but take a look at your hooves and you will finally understand."

Twilight shook in terror as she gazed upon her purple hooves, realizing that they were now enveloped in pure black aura.

"This war and suffering you have endured has released the evil deep within your heart, and it now feeds you power. It was the exact same release I got before I murdered my father, and now it is your turn."

"No….no…"

"You have become a Nightmare, Twilight, and it's time for you to take your place at my side."

"I will never join you! Even if I did, you would plot to absorb my power and use it for your own."

"No Twilight, I used to be afraid of you, but now this evil that you bear…I envy you because of it. Besides, with that kind of power you could enslave the entire planet and put everypony in their place. You could become a queen, an emprise and perhaps even a god." Desolent said, walking next to her and extending his hoof. "I shall give you one more chance, embrace this darkness within your heart or be destroyed along with this entire planet."

Meanwhile, Dark Fire was being comforted by his friends until Sombra spoke up.

"My lord…what shall we do."

Dark Fire shivered as he looked to Sombra with teary eyes.

"Desolent is right where he needs to be, have the guards bring in the requested pony before the plan is executed."

"What about Twilight?" Nightmare asked.

Dark Fire turned away to look towards the middle of the arena where Trixie once was.

"I have finally been broken after all these years…kill her painfully; make her pay for what she's done. I'm through with redemption and forgiveness…and soon the entire planet will feel my wrath." Dark Fire sobbed as black aura started to emit from his body.

Nightmare and the others where in total shock by his answer, but it soon became painfully obvious what was about to happen. Celestia was the first one to respond.

"Dark Fire, your aura…it's starting to change, don't become what you are trying to prevent."

"I DON'T CARE ANYMORE!" Dark Fire screamed, chocking up even more. "S-she took her away from me; she took my Trixie away from me! I watched her die, crying to me to save her…AND I JUST STOOD THERE AND WATCHED HER DIE!" He shouted as his dark aura increased.

"Dark Fire, stop this before the darkness consumes you!" Nightmare yelled.

"I have suffered for long enough, AND NOW I WILL MAKE THIS WHOLE PLANET SUFFER!"

"Nightmare, unbound me before it's too late, I might be the only one left that can stop this!" Celestia pleaded.

"What could you possibly do for him; you have done nothing but make it worse before!"

"Will you just listen to me, I know him more then anypony could possibly know!"

"This is just another trick!" Chrysalis shouted. "Dark Fire, we're your friends, listen to us!"

"Leave me alone…"

"Listen to Tia; she's dealt with this before." Luna said, becoming panicked.

"She's just going to banish him to gods knows where, we have all witnessed it before!" Sombra shouted.

Dark Fire's aura grew as his power increased, darkening his surroundings and making everything feel cold and hopeless.

"Discord, you know what is at stake here, please-

Without a second thought, the bindings on Celestia where removed along with the suppressor on her horn. Everypony including the royals stared in confusion by this move.

"I was there on the day Celestia was born and have known her for my entire life. She wouldn't lie about something like this."

Celestia nodded, running up to Dark Fire and hugging him, making everypony drop their jaws.

"GET OFF OF ME!" Dark Fire screeched.

Meanwhile, the diselements were as confused as ever and the audience couldn't tell if this was part of the show or part of a nightmare.

"I'm not one to but in but…WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON!" Ammisive yelled.

"Desolent is blocking my connection with Twilight; one of you is going to have to distract him." Celestia panicked.

"I demand a reason for this!" Stritin ordered.

"There's no time to explain, just listen to her." Nightmare said, staring at the diselements.

"So one moment was working for Dark Fire, and now we're doing Celestia's chores? Castigate asked. "In case you haven't noticed, my sister just died and you want me to do her hoof work!" He shouted angrily.

"For the love of crystals, just do what she says!" Sombra yelled.

During this time, Desolent was still tempting Twilight to fall and join his side.

"Dark Fire is slowly losing his control over reality and his lose had made his mind venerable. Make your choice and take Dark Fire's place before I make you do it myself."

Twilight's mind was shouting the word "NO" but her mouth wouldn't respond because, to Twilight's shock, a small voice in her head was whispering "yes". Her soul was in an internal battle with her now dark heart, and she was unsure what decision she would make.

"You hesitate because you know I'm right, and you desire to truly know this power. Your rise to limitless power and immortality is just a hoof away. Give in to your hate and suffering like I have and become the most powerful being the world has ever known!"

'NO, I won't do it!' Twilight screamed.

'Do it Twilight, make the world pay for what it has done.' Her mind shouted, taking control.

'I won't give in!'

'This war has broken you.'

'Everypony needs your help Twilight, don't give in!'

'They have turned their backs to you.'

'You have friends that love you!'

'Your friends have abandoned you.'

'Your family needs you!'

'They have forsaken you.'

'You promised to always protect your home!'

'They have broken your promise.'

'You swore to save Night Shadow!'

'He has tried to destroy you.'

'He still loves you…'

'And he has forgotten you…'

'No…'

'Yes…'

"NNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Twilight finally screamed, pushing herself away from Desolent. "I will never join you or your quest for total destruction!"

Desolent lightly chucked, giving Twilight a grin before pointing his hoof at her.

"What a shame…now you will die…"

Twilight watched as Desolent fired a large green ball at her. She closed her teary eyes, waiting and wanting her life to end but it did not come. She looked up to see that a purple mare had deflected the blast away from her.

"Wait, your that-

"Don't you have a country to save?" Maneful asked, taking a fighting stance.

Desolent laughed maniacally as he witnessed the scene.

"Of all the ponies that could possibly stand in my way, it would have to be you."

Maneful flared her wings, letting bright purple magic illuminate them.

"If it's to stop you and your madness, then I would gladly do it a hundred times over."

"Very well then." Desolent said, charging an absorption spell. "Two mares for the price of one."

As Desolent stepped forward, he was blasted by what looked to be a beam of purple and green bubbles.

"Leave my daughter alone." Sombra said, standing next to Maneful.

Desolent looked up angrily to see Nightmare Moon and Chrysalis appear before him. Seconds later, Ammisive, Stritin, Castigate, and Eccentric stood before him, all being ready to attack.

"For freedom!" Maneful shouted.

"And for our empire!" The rest shouted, firing everything they had at Desolent, making a huge blur of colors.

'Twilight, you have to listen to me very carefully.' Celestia said, telekinetically.

The beams blasted at Desolent were quickly sucked into a large sphere in his hooves before he slammed the ball into the ground, knocking his attackers back.

'Death Fire is attempting to release himself from his loss and I don't know how long Night Shadow or Dark Fire will be able to resist.'

Desolent charged forward towards Twilight until Sombra and Nightmare appeared before him and closed lined him.

'You're going to have to stop it using the same spell Dark Fire used that allowed you to see his mind.'

Nightmare and Sombra's victory was short lived as they were abruptly blasted away from Desolent while still in midair. Unfortunately for him, Chrysalis fired a magic beam of her own that hit him directly, knocking him back a good thirty feet.

'I'll be able to open the shield for only a short time, so when I give the signal, teleport up here.'

Just as the dark green pony got to his hooves, his hind-legs became frozen in ice as silver aura restrained him with paralysis.

'On the count of three…

Desolent realized that only Ammisive and Castigate could do this and thus, threw the two together with magic, only for him to get tackled by Manful as the spell broke.

'One…'

Manful was rapidly kicked off the green pony before he darted to Twilight once again. Much to his disliking, a black rope tied around his tail. He turned around to see Eccentric and Stritin struggling to yank him back.

'Two…'

Desolent wrapped the rope around his fore-hoof and rapidly pulled them into the air, spun them around several times, and then cut the rope with his magic, launching them into a wall. Turning to Twilight, he saw that Nightmare, Sombra, and Chrysalis where fully charged with magic and fired at him. He struggled with the three magical beams and slowly scrapped backwards along the ground.

'Three!'

The corrupted pony released a large burst of energy from his body, knocking the three ponies onto their backs. Desolent then dashed in a green blur over them and leaped into the air to tackle Twilight. Just before he could, a bright white and yellow beam hit him on the side that sent him skidding across the floor. He glared up angrily to see Twilight teleport away along with Discord blowing away the smoke on his fingers.

"GET OFF OF ME NOW!" Dark Fire screeched, struggling in Celestia's grip.

"Twilight, hurry!" Celestia pleaded.

Twilight ran forward in front of Dark Fire, who was still struggling angrily.

"W-what do I do?" Twilight asked.

"Apply your horn to his head, relieve his of his pain."

"I'LL ERASE YOU ALL FROM HISTORY!" Dark Fire screamed.

Twilight turned to Luna and Cadence before breaking their bonds with her magic.

"Help her hold him down; I can't have him thrashing around like this."

Luna and Cadence spared no time, using their magic to hold him steady, but at the cost of their magic rapidly fading.

"Do what you got to do Twilight; we can't hold him down like this much longer." Cadence informed.

Twilight lifted Dark Fire's head to face her, staring into his teary and angry eyes. She closed her own eyes and put her horn on his head, but nothing happened.

"What's going on, nothing I do is working!"

"He's mind isn't calm, it's full of anger and sadness, you're going to have to calm him down." Celestia said, losing her hold.

"B-but how, he's transforming right before my eyes…his…purple…eyes."

Twilight realized that Dark Fire's eyes had changed to dark purple, the same color as Night Shadow's and only then did she know what do. She put both of her hooves behind Dark Fire's neck and touched his horn with his.

"I'm sorry for everything I have done Night Shadow…but now it's time for me to make it right."

"You took my heart from me…you took everything I loved away from me!" Dark Fire cried, as more tears came.

"And now I'm here to give them back…"

As quickly as this was said, Twilight leaned in and kissed Dark Fire on the lips. The dark pony's eyes dilated as his black aura reseeded. His tensed muscles relaxed as he let out a deep sigh, being overtaken by emotions. The next thing Twilight knew what that the world around her stop and slowly broke away like glass pieces. She looked around to see nothing but a dark void with only a small amount of light.

"So you really do love me after everything I've done." A familiar but calm voice said behind her.

Twilight slowly turned around, not being able to believe what she was seeing.

"Night Shadow…"


End file.
